1 Link's Adventures after LoZ:OoT
by Talonclawfange
Summary: After Ganon was defeated Link decides not to go back to his own time, and some new land is added to Hyrule. In this land Link meets some strange fairies, and must fight an evil vampiress and a deranged young man calling himself the Dragonlord.
1. The Problem of the Swamp Faeries

bThe Problem of the Swamp Fairies/b  
  
By: Talonclawfange  
  
( E-mail me at Talonofdayyahoo.com, but not if you're going to give me sick advertisements! I DONT WANT THEM!! I'M ONLY 16! Just feedback, please.)  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Hyrule, Link, Epona, Zelda, or anything else from Shigeru Miamoto and Nintendo's genius video game: Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. I wrote this story in dedication to them, since it's from the best video game of all time, created by them. The only things I own are North Hyrule, the Dragonlord, Vamparlia, and all other things not in the original vidio game ( so don't use em' without asking me and putting that I thought them up). I also wrote this because I like reading, drawing, and, recently, writing fantasy (all talents are given to me by God, so all credit goes to him as well). I think Link is really cool- Good job, Miyamoto!   
  
Note: This is about 16 pages long. By the way, this story is somewhere between PG and PG-13, there's no sexual themes or foul language, but there's violence and lots of blood. In the prologue I realize that you don't just claim land whenever you want, but there's no goverment to buy it from, so what am I supposed to say? Oh, nevermind.... Enjoy!  
  
buPrologue/u/b  
  
A while after Hyrule was purged of Ganondorf's evil, Princess Zelda and her father decided to explore the land behind Hyrule Castle (to the north of it). They sent parties of soldiers and discovered that it was beautiful, unowned land. There was quite a lot of it, too.   
  
Immediately behind the castle there was a huge, grassy, hilly feild (Royal Field); with a single gigantic tree, nearly as large as the Deku Tree (The Elder Tree), on a small hill in the middle of it. On two sides of the field that the castle wasn't on there was an enormous, beautiful forest (Ethereal Forest), stretching dozens of miles to the north and east. The soldiers didn't go very far into the forest, but decided that there must be many lakes and rivers in it. The soldiers did go a little ways into it, and found a very tall and treacherous rock formation (The Jagged Beamos). The most capable soldier among them climbed the formation and saw above the trees that the huge forest was bordered by tall, pointed mountains (the Stalfos Swords). The royal family decided these would be the natural boundries of the expanded kingdom for the time being (or until they got someone to accually go through the Ethereal Forest and explore them).  
  
Off to the west of Royal Field there was a swamp. On the outskirts it was only a little moist, with thick mist and lots of trees. The farther in the soldiers went, they discovered the swamp became increasingly more wet and murky, and due to a 'bad feeling' they left the swamp without exploring much of it. It was called Ganon's Swamp and it is still unknown what lies on the other side of it.   
  
All of this new land was claimed by Hyrule's royal family and called North Hyrule.   
  
buSection 1  
  
The Peril of the Fairie's Pool/u/b  
  
Link swung his legs over the side of his soft bed and let out a great yawn. The sun had not yet risen, and Link usually got up early to watch it rise. Sleepily, he dressed and went to his window. He would have gone into Hyrule Field for a better view, but would not leave the castle until he was certain Zelda was awake.  
  
As he watched the sunrise, Link thought about how much he was enjoying his new life living in Hyrule castle. He now had a room which was way bigger than his tiny house, and he was spoiled with a big, extremely soft bed. His room had decorative furnishings, but not much in it except a desk with a chair, his bed, and a dresser and racks to store his clothes and gear.   
  
Link thought about how he had come to be here. After Ganondorf was defeated, Zelda had wanted to send Link back in time, to recover his lost years. What had gotten into her head? Link could go back and enjoy those years whenever he wanted. Why would hewant to go back and forget all he'd been through, to live a life bereft of exciting things like saving princesses and fighting evil? It was, in fact, the doing of evil that Link was able to stay in the castle.   
  
Link used to like dragons. When the Know-It-All-Brothers had told Link about dragons Link hoped he would meet one someday. When Link fought Volvagia, he was dissappointed that it couldn't even talk and wasn't the kind of dragon the brothers had described anyway. A little while ago, however, Link had gotten his wish. A dragon had attacked Hyrule Castle, with the intentions of taking Zelda's triforce. The guards had failed to protect Zelda. She had almost exhausted her magical powers repelling the attack, and could be captured if anything much stronger than that dragon came. Zelda's father said he would post ten times the guards if she wished it, but Zelda firmly declared she did not feel safe without Link around ( but she didnt tell her father that she secretly wanted him around mostly because she loved spending free time with him and maybe had a little crush on him, too). Her father finally agreed that Link was the most capable defender of Zelda and had him moved into a room next to hers, so if anything happened, he, as the royal bodyguard, would hear and help. Since the last attack, he and Zelda had fought off two more dragons, the recent one the biggest. Link suspected they were being controlled, but by no means were they brainless. They were smart and lethal. Despite the danger, Link loved his new (or maybe not so new) job.  
  
When the sunrise was finished, Link heard a knock at his door and Zelda entered.   
  
"Good morning, Princess of Hyrule." Link said cheerfully.   
  
"Link..," Zelde folded her arms and frowned briefly. "you know I'd rather have you call me Zelda. Good morning." She said, a smile replacing the frown.   
  
"Sorry," he said, shrugging.   
  
"Link," Zelda said, "would you please go and get some Arlia plants from Ganon's Swamp today? The ones on the border are all used up, and we need more or the soldier's bruises will go untreated."   
  
"Sheesh...will they ever learn not to massacre each other during training? After all that training, you'd think that they would be brave enough to go into the swamp. Sure I'll get it. Anything else?"   
  
"Not that I can think of," Zelda replied. "Thanks, Link....it must be a pain to go into the swamp all the time because the other soldiers are scared..."   
  
"It's nothing," Link said. He was used to running errands for Zelda that other soldiers wouldn't. It was just another part of his job, and he didn't mind it at all.   
  
After having a little breakfast, Link got his gear, went outside (on the north side of the castle), and called Epona. She came quickly, faithful as always. No matter where she was, she always came. How could she even hear the ocarina when he played it on the north side of the castle when she usually hung out on the south side? Link found himself wondering anew why she didn't stay in the castle's stables. He finally decided that if he was a horse, he would want to roam free as well.   
  
"Hi, Epona," Link said, petting her "can you take me to the swamp, please?" With that, he mounted his friend and she galloped off towards Ganon's Swamp. Link hated the name, of course; but it was a good one since, once inside, you constantly feel like something will try to threaten your life, similar to the feeling he had gotten when Ganondorf tried to discourage him with evil magic.   
  
When Link arrived at the swamp, which didn't take long thanks to Epona's speed, he rode his horse and friend only a little way in, and when the ground got mushy he dismounted.  
  
"Wait here," Link said to Epona, giving her a pat before he walked off into the wet abyss of the swamp, keeping his eyes on the ground for signs of the plant he came for. At first there was only a very thin mist hanging in the marshy air, but after a while it began to thicken as Link went deeper, making it difficult to look for the Arlia plants. Soon it was so thick that he could hardly see ten feet in front of him. He grew somewhat uneasy at the realization that something could sneak up on him without much difficulty in this mist, so he drew his sword.   
  
This was not the Master Sword, that sword had been returned to the pedastal (Zelda said it belonged there when Link wasn't facing a great evil, but somehow he didn't believe that), but this one looked just like it with the exception of a silver hilt rather than a purplish-blue one. It had been infused with light magic from Zelda, so no evil could bear to even touch it without hurting themselves (however it was much weaker than the Master Sword, another reason Link didn't want to leave it in the Temple of Time). Being cut with it would certainly hurt more than an ordinary sword; and because of this, Link knew it would make a good weapon against anything he might meet in this evil swamp.   
  
Link listened carefully for signs of life as he continued walking and scanning the ground for the elusive Arlia. Time passed, but still nothing. The fog kept getting thicker, especially the part of it clinging to the moist ground, nearly hiding it from view entirely.  
  
Despite this, Link continued walking, and because he kept his eyes instenslely focused on the ground, trying to penetrate the dense carpet of fog, he failed to see a low-hanging branch before his forehead smacked right into it.  
  
"Ack!" He exclaimed in irritation and surprise as he fell, scratching his arm on a thorny branch on the way down as he threw his hands behind him to break his fall. Luckily, he caught himself before he landed on the wet ground, his hands and dropped sword making squishing noises as they plunged into the muck.iStupid branch../i.Link thought, glaring at the mushy groud around him. He wanted to find the plant as soon as possible so he could just leave.  
  
"Ick...." Link said, removing his half-submerged hands from the mist-covered, slimy ground. He picked up his sword and sheathed it, examining the small three-inch scratch on his arm. He thought of it as nothing, but Zelda got mad at him the last time he didn't have a scratch treated and it had become infected. He frowned and moved on, keeping a close watch on the ground. His irritation grew with the wet stickyness and pungent smell of the marsh, and a warning grew in the back of his mind that the swamp was not eerily silent and absent of animal life for nothing.   
  
Soon a small pool appeared out of the mist in front of Link. It was only about ten feet across and not very important looking but he stopped as he realized that the water was crystal clear, very unusual for the middle of a swamp. It was lacking the moss and muck and decaying plantlife that all the other pools he'd seen had been choked with. iIt looks shallow now but back there it looked deeper. Are my eyes playing tricks on me?/i Link wondered, glaring at the annoying mist around him which unnaturally seemed to distort everything. He leaned down and smelled the water. It smelled just as pure as it looked. Link picked up a little fist-sized rock that was half-submerged in the slime beside him, and tossed into the middle of the pool. It dissapeared into the pool, and Link couldn't see it sink because of low visiblity, but nothing out of the ordinary happened. Still feeling more than a little suspicious, he thought that the scratch on his arm would get infected if he didn't clean it with something, so he decided to clean his scratch with the water to see if the water was really clean. It wasn't very smart in the first place, but Link saw how careless the decision really was in the next instant. No sooner than his hand touched the water, a green, tentacle-like vine shot out of the middle of the pool, seized Link by the waist, and yanked him into the pool faster than he could act.   
  
Link struggled violently, but the vine-thing dragged him downward, down into the water which was much, much deeper than he had thought it was at first. Even if the thing hadn't been dragging him down, he wasn't the best swimmer in the world, thanks to the weight of his gear. Ironically, all that gear did not include his Zora's tunic, since he didn't think he would have been using it. Desperately, he remembered the dagger in his right boot (he began carrying one when he found it came in useful quite often) and pulled it free. He slashed at the vine, away from his body to prevent cutting himself, but hit nothing. With his limited vision in the ill-lighted pool (getting dimmer by the second as he decended) he coulden't see the vine well and missed several times before his blade struck.   
  
It might as well not have. The vine was extremely tough and the knife did almost nothing to it. Link tried to think of something he could do to the vine, but failed to come up with anything. He hadn't gotten a breath before the vine grabbed him, and he was already feeling the results of the absence of air. Link slashed at the vine a few more times and even tried sawing it, but all it did was give the vine tiny, uneffective cuts. He began to choke and pulled with his free hand at the strong vine relentlessly taking him deeper. He let go of his dagger and futilely yanked at the vine, refusing to give up. His golden gauntlets might have helped, but to use them he had to breathe. His lungs burned and he looked up at the shrinking, dim, grayish circle which was the surface of the pool, seeing in it his pathetic doom: The great Hero of Time died while he was looking for flowers in a swamp. Then everything went black.  
  
buSection 2  
  
Just a Fairy Cave/u/b  
  
Link coughed until all of the water was out of his lungs, and breathed in the air gratefully and he tried to pull together his muddled thoughts. iI remember enterring the swamp...then something...grabbed...oh yeah! /iLink remembered suddenly that something had dragged him into a pool. He was now sitting on hard ground in a cold (or it seemed that way due to his wetness) room which he had never seen before. He looked up and saw a round, watery circle in the middle of the green ceiling which was about fifteen feet above him, and thought he must have fallen through it, and was awakened when his lungs decided they could finally get something from outside other than water. He was surprised he was alive; he had thought it was all over when the vine had him. Alive or not, Link didn't feel like he was in a vey good predicament in this very odd room at the bottom of a deceiving pool which had half-drowned him. The room under water might have freaked out any normal person, but Link had seen stranger things.  
  
Link stood up and inspected the room, noting that it was oval-shaped, was approximately thirty feet across, and had two exits. They were at each long end of the oval opposite each other, one in front of Link, and one behind him; and the exits were about ten feet in height and five feet across. He looked around the floor and discovered that his dagger had been deposited on the floor behind him, and he slid it back in his right boot, between the leather and his white pants. Not the most comfortable place, but Link liked it there anyway. He thought it looked cooler there than on his belt, despite Zelda's disagreement. iWhy does she always have to put her two cents in? At least she doesn't bother me about my green clothes.../iSpeaking of green, it was the color of the walls, ceiling, and floor, and the walls had intricate gold leaf designs on them, as well as a few real vines crawling up them.i Very odd, there's no sunlight down here..../i.The room seemed to be lighted magically and there must have been some kind of magic because of the vines. Link also noticed that there were eyeball-sized circles on the floor and ceiling, but he didn't have enough time to find out what they were.  
  
Before Link could decipher anything else about the room, he heard the unmistakable sound of fairy wings. iWhew, this is just a fairy cave...I was beginning to get worried for a minute./i The sound was coming from behind him and he turned and watched tiny forms materialize from the dark tunnel leading out. When the fairies came into view, Link realized with suprise that they were unlike any fairy he had ever seen in his life. They were a little bigger than storm faeries (which are the ones that come out of the ground at certain places if you play the strom song, and are little bigger than normal fairies) and did not glow like other fairies he had seen. He suddenly missed Navi, who could have probably told him something about them. The thought was gone istantly, however, as Link curiously watched the fairies flutter the room. The fairies were wearing small tunics like Link's, except made of leaves. A few were wearing black ones, but most were wearing green, and they were all female. Link noted they were carrying tiny, sheathed, swords at their sides. About three dozen faires flew into the room, all of their little, pretty eyes on Link. When they got closer to him they spread out, gracefully bobbing up and down as they made a circle around the perplexed Link. All at once they began chanting a little tune.iThis might not be so bad,/i Link thought, iBut I'd better not let my guard down./i The fairies' song went like this:   
  
i"We are singing, singing, ever singing, singing for you now.   
  
We love singing, singing ever singing. Singing when we're filled with love."/i  
  
The fairies danced in the air, circling slowly. Theye were all smiling very strangely at Link, making him suspicious. This was definately the strangest fairy behavior he'd ever seen, not to mention the strangest fairies.  
  
i"We are singing, singing cause we love you, always singing for love.   
  
We are singing, singing, ever singing, singing cause we love your bBLOOD!/b" /i  
  
With that last surprisingly loud shout from their tiny voices, they all drew their blade-of-grass-sized, but razor sharp swords and flew at Link. It was funny. Did they really think they could fight?  
  
Link had been ready for this, and ducked. The fairies screeched and stupidly ran into each other just as Link had thought they would. They all fell to the floor in a circle around Link's feet, some uncouscious, some moaning, and some bleeding, accidentally stabbed by their own comrads' swords. He saw one behind him that was a little more aware of her surroundings than the others, so he walked over to her and crouched to see her more closely. She was one of the fairies wearing black, and she glared up at him defiantly, but was hurt and didn't attack him.   
  
"Which way is out?" He asked the little fairy nicely. He was used to being nice to fairies (even when Navi had bugged him to death he didn't hurt her) and though maybe these ones were just very confused.  
  
"And why should I tell you?" the little brat responded with an attitude. Link sighed, seeing that he was going to have to threaten her to get directions. Apparently they weren't confused, just evil. He didn't want to stick around to find out if they had back up in the form of something more powerful than a fairy.  
  
"Because if you don't," Link said in a calm tone, "I will step on you."   
  
"Eeeeek!" she screamed and her eyes grew wide with fear. "Okay, okay! it's right behind me! Go through that tunnel and turn left! Thats the exit, I swear!" She squeaked.   
  
"Thank you." Link said with a smile to assure her that he wasn't going to step on her.  
  
Link stepped over the fairy and walked into the tunnel. He saw that it was magically lighted like the green room, but a little dimmer. He shivered as he continued into the dark tunnel, which wasmuch colder than the room.i If it gets much colder I'll just light a fire arrow to warm up and see better..../iAfter only about a minute of walking he came to a fork in the tunnel. iShe said left,/i he remembered, and went that way. It occured to him that the little fairy might have been lying to save her life, but fairies weren't known to lie, and he didn't think they would sink that low, even if they were trying to hurt him. As he walked down the tunnel, he noticed it was getting dimmer and wetter. iHow annoying, /iLink thought, remembering also how it had become damper and more difficult to see as he progressed into the waiting dangers of the swamp. He began to think that maybe the fairy ihad/i lied to him, and as he continued down the tunnel, his sense of foreboding grew. He saw a wall comming up, and observed that there was a tunnel branching of to the left of the wall, but as he saw this his fears of the fairie's truthfulness were suddenly confimed. He jumped as he heard a loud noise behind him, the noise of a gate slamming shut.   
  
"AW, MAN!" He yelled as he turned and ran to the gate to test its strength. The moment he layed hands on it he was thrown in to the wall behind him by a magical force. He groaned and got up, shaken but unhurt, scolding himself for being so stupid. iFirst I believed that fairy, then I didn't even check for hidden doors that slam behind you once you pass them! How could I be such a numbskull? Now whatever lies ahead of me may very well be my end./i And the end of Zelda, he suddenly realized, if another dragon was sent to capture her that was even bigger than the last one they had barely defeated together.i Oh, well....nothing to do but continue,/i he thought unhappily.   
  
Link turned down the tunnel which branched off from the first one. This tunnel was lit so dimly that he could barely make out his footing. Link decided it had gotten too dark, so he tried to make a fire arrow; but the tunnel had gotten so damp that every one he made went out in a few seconds. Eventually, he quit trying because he was wasting magic. He trudged on.  
  
Link kept his eyes and ears open for trouble this time, and after a while he spied some pale white-looking sticks on the ground. As he got closer he realized that they were bones. Human bones. He inhaled sharply and looked around the tunnel for what could have killed the owner of those bones. He layed his hand on the wall to his right and saw that there was a....kind of slit in it. It was a horizontal slit and was deep enough that he couldn't feel the depth of it, and extended far down the wall away from him. Link had seen this type of thing before. After he took some more steps, spikes would probably shoot out of the slit, completely shish-ka-bobifying whoever had triggered the trap. To see if this was the case, he took out an unlit bomb (he considered the bones on the floor too small to trigger the trap), backed away, and threw it down the tunnel.  
  
Link saw that he had been wrong about the trap, and was grateful that he had tested it. A huge, very sharp, circular, horizontally spinning blade shot halfway out of the slit in the right wall about thirty-five feet down the tunnel. Two more shot out about five feet down the tunnel on the left wall, from two slits Link hadn't noticed; one at about the level of Link's head, and one just like it down at about the level of his heels.The blades were very large, and stuck out in the tunnel just enough that if someone tried to flaten himself on a wall to avoid them, he would be cut up anyway. The two blades on the left moved down the wall away from Link and the one on the right moved towards him. The three blades passed each other halfway, the one on the right going between the two on the left, and after going ten more feet they disappeared back into the wall. The whole thing had not made one noise, except the swishing of the swift blades as they cut through the air.   
  
iGreat, just how am I supposed to get through that? /iLink wondered. iI can't jump over the highest one or roll under the lowest one and I can't go through the middle because they all intercept! If there was just the right one or the left two only, it would be easy...but this will be really hard./i Link looked at the ceiling just to check if there was anything he could use his hookshot on, but there was nothing. He knew his bombs weren't powerful enought to explode the thick, deadly blades, and didn't want to waste any more. He might have tried the hammer, but knew he couldent swing the heavy thing fast enough to catch one of the quck blades, so what could he do? Finally, he thought of something. It was very dangerous, and if he thought there was any other way to get past, he would have tried it, because this plan depended on speed, something which Link didn't have much of with all his gear (well, he considered himself to be pretty fast but was proven wrong the last time he fought Impa. He hadn't landed a single hit!).  
  
Link wished himself luck, he would need it, and ran down the tunnel. Instantly, he heard the swishing of the blades coming out. He felt a draft on his back and knew the two blades on the left were right behind him, and he saw the blade in front on the right comming towards him, too. Quickly, Link did a back flip, getting over the lowest blade but not jumping high enough to hit the top one. They rushed on past him, and he followed them. They passed the middle one, which was comming strait for Link. When that one reached him, he rolled under it and continued to dash down the tunnel as fast as his legs could carry him. The two blades in front of him and the one he just rolled under dissapeared back into the walls, and Link barely had time to roll again when a second blade from the slit in the right wall shot out, trying to cut him in half. It whooshed over his head and he was finally out of range of the blades. He turned around and watched the second set of blades sweep the length of their slits, barely beleiving that he had actually been able to carry make it through. The blades disappeared back into the walls, and Link continued on.  
  
After Link had been walking down the tunnel for a few minutes, keeping careful watch for more traps in the dim light, he finally came to something that looked suspicious. Directly in front of him, on both sides of the tunnel, there were many holes spread out along the walls, each aproximately three inches away from the others, and each about the size of an eyeball frog's eyes (a bit smaller than a fist). The scattering of holes went on for about three feet, and the walls were smooth beyond that point.i Maybe darts will shoot out of them,/i Link thought cautiously. Quickly, he put his hand out in front of one of the holes and snatched it back. Good thing he did it quickly, because huge, thick, barbed spikes shot out of the holes. They were all about three feet long, and there must have been about sixty of them. The spikes on one side of the wall extended into the midst of the ones on the other side, but didn't collide and paused for a couple seconds, all interlocking like a giant iron maiden or a huge, sharp-toothed mouth. Then all the spikes pulled quickly back into their holes, leaving no trace to betray they had even come out.  
  
Link knew he didn't have many options. He thought these spikes looked even tougher than the blades, and equally indestructable by means of a bomb. However, he had something stonger than a bomb. The only thing he could use was his hammer, and he had to jam the trap so the spikes would sit still long enough to be hit. Link could only think of one way to do that.  
  
Link put his hand in front of a hole again, and yanked it back just in time to miss the spikes a second time. This time when the spikes paused, he sucked in a huge breath and grabbed one, using his gauntlets to keep hold of it. The barbs dug into his skin and blood ran down his hands, but he ignored it, waiting for the trap to break. Break it did; with a huge crash, followed by a cracking sound, when the spikes tried to go back into the wall. All of them were connected inside the wall, so when Link grabbed one, none could retreat back into their holes. He released the spike when the trap broke, and all the spikes sat still, waiting to be crushed by the Megaton Hammer.  
  
He wiped his bloody, slippery hands on his tunic, hardly noticing the pain in them when he took out his heavy hammer. With one great SMASH, Link broke all the spikes, and their ends scattered on the floor, leaving the way open. iI wonder how many more traps are in this stinking tunnel?/i Link thought irritably, then realized that the tunnel really idid/i stink - he could smell the swamp! iFinally, some progress!/i Link thought happily, imaybe this really is the exit to this cursed fairy cave./i  
  
Link walked on, somewhat happier, but still keeping careful watch for more traps he felt certain were still between him and his destination. As Link went down the tunnel, it seemed to rise a bit, then it started getting steeper and steeper, until Link was practically crawling up it, trying not to slip. His boots lost their footing a few times, but each time Link caught himself before he was sent sliding down the slope. After a few minutes he began to get irritated with the slope, which seemed to be getting even steeper, but just he felt sure he would need climbing gear to scale it, the tunnel leveled out. "About time!" Link said, startling himself when his voice echoed back to him louder than he had spoke. iWhoops..../i Link thought, glad that he felt certain there was nothing living in this tunnel to hear him.i Now I remember why I don't talk to myself..../i  
  
Link noticed that the air was getting less stale (but more stinky), meaning that he was now close to an exit of some sort. He walked on, still carefully watching for traps, and he it didn't take long to find something that didn't look right. The light was so dim that he almost missed it, but he had been looking at the wall to his right and saw a tiny little hole in it, only about the size of a deku nut. He didn't put anything in front of it yet, but carefully checked both the right and left walls and dicovered three more little holes. One was on the left wall, directly across from the first one he had seen; one was down at the level of his knees, right below the first one he had seen; and one direcly across from that one, below the second hole.i Probably more motion sensors,/i Link knew. iMaybe this one will trigger more blades that will shoot out from somewhere....but where? /iLink strained his eyes and peered down the dimly lit tunnel. He could barely make out a wall...about twenty feet away from him, and another passage way branching off to the right of that wall. He couldn't see the wall very well, but thought there most be holes in it for shooting unwelcome objects into a careless intruder. Link decided it was time to test the trap.  
  
He pressed himself against the right wall, hoping that whatever the trap had in store wouldn't be widespread enough to hit him. He moved a hand in front of the hole and immediately heard the sound of tiny objects flying through the air, coming from the wall twenty feet down. Hundreds, maybe thousands, of little needle-sized darts flew past his body, mere centimeters from pricking him. They kept coming for about two seconds, then stopped abruptly. There was a skittering sound as they all dropped to the floor. Some flew far enough to get to the slope Link had climbed earlier, and he heard them sliding down it, the scratchy sound filling the tunnel. That was close! Link thought to himself, and he knew he couldn't slide along the wall to avoid the darts. Any movement whatsoever would have put him in the way of the darts.   
  
Link leaned down and picked one up, observing that the end was darkened. It smelled toxic and the dark purplish color had soaked all the way into the wood of the needle-dart, meaning it was poisoned. Link wondered who could have the patience to personally poison each of the vastly numbered darts by hand and thought it would be difficult to get them all. This didn't matter, though, and Link threw down the dart, remembering his earlier thought of the size of the sensory holes. He took out a deku nut, flattened himself against the wall once more, and jammed the deku nut into the first hole he had seen.   
  
Instantly the darts shot out, once again missing him by narrow centimeters. After they stopped, Link put his hand out in front of the hole he just jammed, and threw himself against the wall again, but nothing happened. The way between the first two holes was closed by the nut, so the magic motion sensors could not function. iYes, it worked!/i Link thought enthusiastically. iOnly one more set of holes to go!/i Link crouched down and prepared to put himself on the wall again after jamming the other hole, messing up it's sensing ability. By this time, the floor was completely littered with needle-like darts, and Link slipped on some when he forced the deku nut into the low hole. After slipping Link barely had time to throw himself on the wall before the rush of darts came. A few brushed past his nose and some got caught in his tunic, but he didn't think any pierced him; but when the darts stopped, he realized there was a tiny, peircing pain in his shoulder. He looked down and saw a dart lodged halfway into it.  
  
Worriedly, he withdrew the dart.i Now what.../ihe thought,i I'll never get to the castle in time to get this poison treated.../i.Slowly, he wiped the blood from the dart. His eyes grew wide and he stared at it, dumbfounded. How could he possibly be so lucky? It was clean! The end was not darkened, which meant that while most darts had been carefully poisoned, this one had been missed! He just could not believe it and checked the hole in his shoulder to see if there was any dark poison. Nothing but blood! Link grinned, thanking whatever it was that had given him such luck.   
  
Link passed by the stopped holes without darts shooting at him, and came without incident to the wall and the passageway, which branched off to the right. He peered into the passage and discovered that there were stairs, and, much to his relief, there was light at the top of them! He rushed up the stairs, finding no traps on the way, and got to the top in no time. The stairs stopped and Link saw a ladder on the wall in front of him.   
  
He climbed it and went through a short four-foot, low-ceilinged tunnel and emerged into the wonderful light (well, sort of light...for a misty, murky swamp). He turned and only saw the trunk of a very large tree behind him. Puzzled, Link stuck his hand out to touch the bark, but his hand went right throught it! iOh, a disguised entrance,/i he realized. iSomething I could probably see through with my Eye of Truth. But who cares?/i Link thought, iI'm not going back there again!/i He started to walk away from the tree, but didn't get very far before he heard a tiny voice behind him.   
  
"Waiiiiiiiiiiiiit!!!" said a fairy, appearing from the bark behind Link. "you can't just leave like that!"  
  
Link turned and recognized this to be the fairy that had told him where the exit was...but convieniently 'forgot' to mention the traps on the way.  
  
"Hey!" Link growled, glaring at her. "why didn't you tell me about the traps? And what do you mean I can't leave? Watch me!" He stalked off away from her.  
  
"Noooooooooo!" She pleaded pitifully " Please don't leave! I didn't tell you about the traps because you were going to step on me! If you leave, my entire clan will be wiped out!"  
  
Link stopped and turned around. He fixed his eyes on her as if she had said the stupidest thing he had ever heard.   
  
"So first you try to kill me, then I almost get killed by traps you didn't tell me about, and inow/i you want me to istay/i in this stinking swamp to save fairies who tried to turn me into a pin cushion? I have better things to do!" He snapped. "And I was inot/i going to step on you!"  
  
"Wait pleeease! I didn't want to kill you! A vampire has come to the Swamp Fairies and killed our Queen! She is now Queen, and unless we capture creatures for her to suck thier blood out, she'll kill us! If we ever see a Hylian we are by no means to let them go - they're her favorite!"  
  
"A vampire, huh? Why didn't you and your friends try to turn her into a pin cushion instead of me?"  
  
"Oh, Vamparlia is far too strong! There is no way we can beat her....just looking at her frightens me! Please...I don't care if you save yourself, but bring us other Hylians...criminals, maybe...so she can have one. Now that she knows one's been in her cave, we'll all be destroyed if she doesn't get one!" The pathetic little creature began to sob violently.  
  
Link sighed in exasperation. He was going to walk away, but got angry at himelf when he found that he just coulden't do it. He really liked fairies, having been around them his whole life, and if this one's story was true, he coulden't leave her to an angry vampire.  
  
"Well, there's no way I'm going to bring any poor creature to it's doom at the teeth of a vampire...but there is another way I can help you."  
  
"Yes? Yay!" she perked up immediately. "What's your plan?"  
  
"Take me to your queen as a prisoner, then I'll try to defeat her, okay?"  
  
"Yay!!!Lets go!" The little fairy grinned and laughed for a while.  
  
buSection 3  
  
The Vampiress Vamparlia/u/b  
  
The fairy, named Saysa, began to lead Link back to the pool he had been pulled into earlier (the Fairie's Pool, Saysa told him) and needless to say, he was reluctant to go.  
  
"Are you sure that vine-thing wont try to kill me again?" Link asked her for the third time as he followed her through the mist.  
  
"No...If a fairy is present, the vine will obey whatever orders the fairie gives it. I'll just tell it to make us a bubble and take us down nice and slow, okay?" She glanced back at him, not stopping.  
  
"If you say so..." Link muttered nervously.  
  
Soon they came to the pool, which hadn't been more than half a mile west of the hidden tree entrance. Link stepped up to the edge of the pool, and stared at it, amazed that it still looked five feet deep.  
  
"Nice illusion, huh?" said Saysa, and whistled as if calling a dog.  
  
"Nice...." Link pretended to agree. He took a step back as the deadly vine emerged from the pool. It hung in the air in the manner of a snake waiting for instructions.  
  
"Make us a bubble," Saysa ordered, snapping her fingers. Instantly, the vine began to twist around, and a small bubble magically formed in front of it. The vine-tentical kept twisting and the bubble grew, until it was big enough to fit the fairy and Link.  
  
"Don't you think I'm a bit heavy for a bubble?" Link asked the fairy.  
  
"No," she said, smiling. "If you'r not too heavy to be pulled into the pool by the vine, then it's magical bubble will be more than strong enough for you."  
  
Link and the fairy got into the bubble, and the fairy told the vine to take them down to the Main Room slowly. The vine wraped itself around the bubble and pulled it down, and once again Link was descending into Faerie's pool.  
  
iI guess she really isn't trying to trick me../i.Link thought with relief. iIf she was trying to kill me, she would have had this vine do it./i The fairy's thoughts were completely different.  
  
iBlast! This guy put CUTS in the invincible Fairies Vine, and threw a rock on it's still submerged head! He stretched it by pulling on it and caused it so much pain that it dropped him before he was dead! I'll just have to use the second line of defense.../i  
  
Finally Link saw a growing circle of light below him and the vine took them through it. It put the bubble on the ground of the Main Room gently, then withdrew back into the wet circle on the ceiling that was the pool. The bubble popped when the vine left, and Link tunrned to Saysa. "Well, I guess that wasn't so bad. Now where is your - hey! Where are you going?"  
  
With a evil laugh from her puny fairie's voice, Saysa rushed into the tunnel on the left, as fast as her little wings could carry her. Link immediately suspected she would do something he woulden't like, and tried to follow her. Link simply didn't run quite as fast as a fairie can fly. Saysa reached the tunnel (which was the one opposite the tunnel Link went into earlier), and pulled a hidden lever on the wall. A grate came from the roof of the tunnel and slammed into the floor with a crash, sealing the fairy away from Link. He heard another crash behind him, and turned to see that the other exit was sealed as well. Slowly, he turned to the fairy.  
  
"You should have stepped on me!" She exclaimed with childish laughter. "Maybe I told you the truth about everything...I really am going to take you to the Queen...but you'll be dead! Ahahahaha!" The dark intentioned fairy pushed a button next to the lever she had pulled, and Link discovered the function of the dots on the floor and ceiling he had wondered about earlier. Each dot was really a tiny door. They all rolled back, and razor-sharp spikes emerged from them. The spikes were easy enough to avoid, but then the ceiling made a loud grating noise, and started moving downwards. Link knew he was in trouble now. There was absolutely nowhere to go - a large circular door had covered up the watery circle on the celieng (Fairy's Pool) so he couldn't go there; and both exits were blocked. Link would have tried to hit the lever with an arrow or something, but remembered that a magical force was activated whenever anything got close to the gate (he learned that lesson when he was thrown into the wall). Link didn't think he had anything strong enough to stop the ceiling from desending, and was at a loss for ideas; and Saysa's kidish cackling wasn't helping matters.   
  
The celing was now low enough that Link could reach it, and he put his arms up, trying to use the gauntlets to stop it. Saysa laughed louder.   
  
"Do you really think ithat/i will work? The ceiling isn't just weight, it's also enchanted to squash anything trying to stop it! No matter how hard you try, the ceiling will not stop. You will be crushed. Ahahahaha! You gullible FOOL!"  
  
Link grunted with strain, but the ceiling wasn't even close to slowing down. Link had to crouch so it wouldn't run into his head. It was pushing him towards the floor, and he looked below him to see if he was going to hit any spikes on the ground. He wasn't if he stayed exacly where he was, but if he did that, one of the spikes on the ceiling would hit him. There was nothing Link could do. Link was pressed to the floor, and despite his best efforts, a spike on the ceiling started peircing his lower right chest. Link screamed in agony as the spike got deeper, and his rib made a sickening snapping sound as it was broken by the spike. The ceiling threatened to turn him into Hylian pancake.   
  
All of the sudden a fairy wearing green came up behind the unsuspecting Saysa, knocked her out by kicking the back of her heaf, and pushed the button next to the lever a second time. The ceiling began to go back up where it belonged. Link groaned in pain as the bloody spike pulled itself from his chest and receded back into it's hole, along with the rest of the spikes. When the ceiling reached it's original height, the holes closed as the dot-doors went back in place.   
  
The fairy that had saved him reversed the lever, and the gates which were blocking the tunnels went back up into the the place they came from. The way now free, the little fairy fluttered over to Link. It looked like one of the fairies that had attacked him earlier.  
  
"I am Kayl, a fairy which foolishly attacked you a while ago. I must thank you for sparing me. I was knocked out and you could have easliy destroyed me and my sisters. I am truly sorry for attacking you, but as Saysa told you, us fairies have no choice. Thank you again for sparing us."  
  
"Sure," said Link, trying to rise. "I wouldn't-" Link gasped in pain, clutching his wound which felt like someone was twisting a blade in it, because of the strain of trying to get to his feet.  
  
"I can help you," the fairy said with a smile. "Here we have enchanted Arlia plants which are ten times more powerful than normal ones, and a single plant won't run out of it's healing power for years! I was watching you for a short while with my magic after you left through our tree-trunk exit. I heard your promise to try and stop our evil queen...sadly, Saysa was one of the fairies that had an evil spell cast on her...thoses fairies push the rest of us around and wear black. They are loyal to Vamparlia until the spell is broken....Oh, listen to me! Yapping on when you have a wound that needs healing! I will return in a few mintutes." With that, Kayl flew off into the tunnel from which she had come.  
  
Weakly, Link made him self a bandage out of some clothes he was carrying; but the wound was big enough that the cloth did little to stop the steady flow of blood. Dizzy with pain, Link dragged himself into the wall behind him and propped himself up against it, so he would have a clear view of both tunnel doorways. After a while of waiting, at least a few minutes, it became an effort to remain awake, and Link knew he would have to change bandages already.  
  
The silence was oppressive. Link stared at the wall in front of him, but his eyes were not focused enough to make out the vines. He had changed bandages several times (in Link's world, they didn't know that it's better to put a new bandage over the old one if the bleeding hasn't stopped), but despite them a small pool of blood was forming on the floor below his stab wound. His head drooped and he was barely conscious. Link didn't know how much time had passed since the fairy left, but it was far more than a few minutes, possibly hours. He tried to keep his mind awake by thinking of the Arlia plant, and how it only healed bruises, so it woulden't do much for his wound unless it really was as powerful as the fairy said. Even then, it might not go deep enough to heal the entire thing. Then Link's mind strayed to other things, and he nearly fell asleep. Dazedly he sat up taller, trying not to fall into unconsciousness. After what seemed like an eternity of sitting in silence bleeding, Link heard a sound in the tunnel Kayl had gone through. The sound was some creature moving towards him in the tunnel, but it certainly wasn't a fairy. Link heard footsteps.   
  
Shortly, a woman came around the corner...a very odd woman. Link supposed she must be a vampire...but he had never seen one, just heard about them from the Know-It-All Brothers when he was young. The vampire was very tall, easily two feet taller than Link if he stood up, and she looked very evil. Her dark red eyes went perfectly with the malicious look on her face, which was framed by sleek, black, flowing hair. She wore a long, black dress with billowing sleeves that seemed to float on the air every time she made even the slightest move, and two purple wings were on her back, which looked like bird wings and bat wings mixed. The vampire looked to be pretty young despite her height, but Link had heard that vampires don't age if they drink blood. Finally he looked down at her hand, which held a struggling Kayl. This was obviously the Vamparlia Saysa had spoken of.  
  
"So, little Hylian," She started to speak in a low, threatening voice. It was loaded with hatred and condescention. "You thought you could come and kick me out of my kingdom?"  
  
Link looked up at her face. He tried to speak strongly and failed miserably, his words quiet with pain. "This is not your kingdom...leave these fairies alone. They have done nothing to you."  
  
"Who cares? They are pathetic little creatures meant to serve me, and you are a pathetic little creature meant to feed me." She smiled evily, and the smile quickly grew into a wide grin which displayed her very sharp teeth.  
  
Link tried to get up, but could only clutch his lower right chest in agony every time he moved. The vampire only laughed at him.  
  
"You really are stupid! You actually get lucky and find your way out through my traps, then you come back, like a complete idiot, fooled by my incredibly simple-minded slave Saysa! Oh, well...it's only a pity that so much of your blood will rot on the floor rather than nourish my beautiful, youthful body." The vampiress started to walk towards Link, her malicious intent painted all over her pale face.  
  
Link took out his bow and pulled an arrow out of his quiver (laying on the ground next to him because it was uncomfotable to lean against the wall wearing it), aiming it for the vampiress's chest. It was his best weapon since he couldn't get up and fight with his sword without any healing. The vampire stopped and stared hungrily at the blood leaking from Link's wound, aparently not even noticing the arrow. iToo bad the red fairies stopped healing me, /iLink thought, ibecause I got so many 'hearts' that it exhausted all their powers to do it...and they don't make milk or red potions like they used too...it works worse than iArlia,/i for goodness sake!/i  
  
"Stay back..." Link warned, pointing the arrow at her chest. "And put Kayl down! That is so mean...why do you ilike/i to hurt fairies? I really don't think I could do it..."  
  
"HAH!" The vampiress gave him a man-you're-really-dumb kind of look. "Do you honestly think I'll put her down just because you tell me to?"  
  
Link let the arrow fly, but as he expected, the vampire did something about it. She simply raised her free hand, caught it without the slightest effort, and dropped it.  
  
"You make me sad," she taunted, "with how terribly pathetic your efforts are...I like to play with my food, but you're no fun at all..."  
  
Link was about to put his bow back but Kayl spoke up.  
  
"Link!" She yelled in her tiny voice, "shoot her again! Use ice magic if you have it! She doesn't like-" Her yell ended with a painful gasp, as Vamparlia began sqeezing her.   
  
"You insubordinate little insect..."  
  
Link got an arrow out, turned it to an ice arrow, and fired it at Vamparlia, despite his doubt about her not catching it again. She was about to catch it, but brave little Kayl bit her finger.  
  
"Ow! You pesty-" Her yell was cut off as the arrow struck her shoulder, and the vampire froze over. Luckily, her surprised fingers released Kayl before the ice hit the fairy, and she zipped out of the way just in time.  
  
Now that Kayl was out of the vampiress's hand, Link saw that she carried a glowing bud from and Arlia plant, and she flew over to him.  
  
"Finally! It was getting hard to breathe! Thanks for saving me...here you go!" She flew down to Link's peirced chest and rubbed the flower on it softly.  
  
"I'm sure this won't heal the whole thing and you'll still be a little weak, but at least you should be able to stand."  
  
"Thank you...Now you better get out of here, " Link said worriedly, putting down his bow next to his quiver. "My ice arrows aren't permanent, she'll break out any second!  
  
"Okay, good luck, Link!!!" Kayl flew off, and Link slowly rose to his feet, finding that he was still in a lot of pain.i Ow, ow, ow, OUCH! Stop complaining, Link! This is it./i..Link thought as he stood watching cracks form rapidly in the ice surrounding Vamparlia.  
  
Link drew his sword (not his sheild, his right hand was too busy putting pressure on the half-healed pain in his side) and his head swam from loss of blood as Vampalia burst out of the ice, mad as ever.  
  
"Wretched Hylian! You will DIE!" The vampire powered up her right hand with dark energy, and sent it (the energy, not the hand) hurling at Link. He had experience with magic flying at him, and deflected it into a wall with his sword without even thinking. Then Link ran at her, as fast as possible for his condition, and attempted a jump slash. The vampire hadn't expected this, and it hit her in full force. She screeched in pain as the sword easily sliced through layers of skin, making a huge slash from her shoulder to the bottom of her waist.   
  
"Ahhhhhhhhggghhhh!" She yelled as blood spurted from her wound, then abruptly the pained look on her face vanished, replaced by an ugly smile. "That hurt a little...but you'll have to do much better than that!" Link stared in astonishment as the slash slowly closed up, leaving no trace it had ever been there. Link had been told this would happen, but still couldn't beleive it. While he was off-guard, the vampire grabbed Link's head to hold him in place and drove her knee into his stomach a few times, knocking the breath from him. She was extremely strong for her light build, and Link coughed up some blood as she dug her knee into him one last time for good measure. As the vampire let go of him, Link staggered back and dropped his sword, nearly falling over. Then Vamparlia used dark magic to make her fingernails into thick, sharp claws, and laughing, she slammed them into Link's chest extremely hard.   
  
"Eeaaahhhhhh!" Link yelled in pain as he was thrown into the wall behind him by the blow, which also made five deep, painful, slashes, from which came more blood that Link couldn't afford to lose.  
  
Link tried to get up, but couldn't even see Vaparlia clearly as she approached him. She leaned down and extending her left hand, took Link by the throat, easily lifting him off the ground with monster-like strength.  
  
"Time to die," Vamparlia said, grinning up at him evilly as he choked and struggled weakly for a couple dozen seconds. Then she lowered the strangling Link until the exposed part of his neck was level with her shining teeth. "It's about time for the rest of your blood to be mine." She dug her sharp teeth into Link's neck, and proceeded to do what vampires do best, drain his blood.   
  
Link tried to pull her off, but knew it wasn't working. He was getting weaker, the beast taking gulps of the liquid sustaining his life. iMy sword and arrows are on the ground, what can I use? /iHis brain wasn't working very well, starving for oxygen, but finally it remembered the knife.  
  
Despite his life being throttled and drained from him at the same time, Link found the strength to yank the dagger from his boot and stick it in into the wrist of the hand holding him in the air. The vampire screeched, pulling her wicked teeth from Link's neck and dropped him. The vampiress backed away, holding her nearly-severed hand so it wouldent fall off, screaming in excruciating pain. Link coughed blood out of his throat and gratefully filled his starving lungs with air. It was extremely painful to breathe, but Link ignored it, and glared up at Vamparlia. His bow was conveniently sitting next to him where he put it down a while ago, and he picked it up. He beheaded an arrow and aimed the wooden shaft at the vampie's heart (he had been told only wooden stakes kill vampires), pure willpower alone keeping him awake.  
  
"Leave..." he muttered in a barely audible whisper as the vampire paused in her screeching to hear him, "don't force me to kill you...vampire or not...I...don't wan't to...Leave the fairies alone or I will..."  
  
"SHUT UP, YOU MUTTERING FOOL! I WILL NOT LEAVE! I RULE! I WILL KILL YOU!!!" The vampire launched herself at Link, who released the headless arrow right into her heart.  
  
"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" The vampiress's ear-piercing scream rivaled that of a banshee's as she dissapeared in to an explosion of thick, black ashes.  
  
When the ash settled, Link was unconscious.  
  
buSection 4  
  
Finally, the Arlia!/u/b  
  
Link awoke about three hours later in an odd, white room; and immediately his ears filled with a loud, but strangely far-away sounding noise. As Link's eyes adjusted, he saw hundreds of tiny faces smiling down at him and as his ears began working properly, he realized the loud noise was the faces cheering.  
  
"Quiet, QUIET!" yelled a familiar voice. "can't you see you're giving him a headache?!"  
  
The sound stopped immediately and Link found himself looking up at Kayl and Saysa, the latter of which had changed her clothes to green.   
  
"Hi, Link!" She said, bobbing up and down in the air in the manner of a hyper child.   
  
"Shhhh, Saysa, don't yell," Kayl reminded her.  
  
"It's okay..." Link said, finding that his senses were clearing up and he felt just fine. He sat up, looking at all the fairies smiling at him. "How long have I been asleep?" All of the fairies started jabbering at once.  
  
"Quiet, quiet, sisters!" Kayl commanded, who seemed to be the most respected one of the bunch. "You have slept one sunspace, or three hours in your time, I believe. We used a spell The Great Fairy of the Swamp herself gave us to heal you completely. It took all of us together...but we're so glad you're awake! Thank you, thank you so much!" Once again all the faires started yapping, and all Link could make out was, "Thanlyouthankyoulinkqueenvampirethankyoubravethank-"  
  
"iQUIEEEET!/i" Kayl yelled at the top of her lungs. She turned to Link. "Needless to say, we're all very thankful to you for releasing us from Vamparlia's tyranny. What can we do for you?"  
  
"Well, I just want to get out of this swamp...oh wait! Hey, I could really use a couple of those enchanted Arlia plants, if you can spare them..."  
  
'"You can have as many as you want!" Said Saysa, beaming. She looked like the happiest fairy in the world to be able to do something nice for Link after causing him so much pain. "Me and a few of my talented sisters can enchant as many as we want! You can have a thousand, if you like!"  
  
"No, no...I don't need that many," said Link quetly, smiling at her. " I think fifty will be just fine if they work as long as Kayl said. That way, Hyrule Army and Royal Guard officers can have some..."  
  
"Kayl wasn't exaggerating, you'll be pleased!" Exclaimed Saysa, and flew off with a couple other fairies to go get the flowers.  
  
"Well, Link, I guess you'll be wanting to get out of here like you said...I'm sorry, but you'll have to use the vine again..." Kayl said.  
  
"That's fine...I just want to get home...Zelda's gonna kill me for staying out so long." Link said with a short laugh.  
  
"Oh, your wife is worrying about you?" Kayl asked innocently.  
  
"Wife?" Said Link, turning red. "She isn't my iwife/i, she's the princess of Hyrule! I'm just her bodyguard...I've been gone so long the captain of the Royal Guard might think I'm failing in my duty...so you see, I really must be getting back."  
  
"Hyrule? What's that?"  
  
"It's the kingdom I came from...hey, want to be part of it? This swamp kinda is...But we can't just take your land from you...Don't worry, the king is really nice."  
  
"Sure! We don't 'own' this swamp anyway...just this cave. We would be glad to be part of Hyrole"  
  
"Hyrule." Link said.  
  
"Oh, sorry! Um...this way to the Main Room!"  
  
Link got off the floor ( he supposed they didn't have beds because most fairies don't sleep in them), and noticed his gear on the floor next to where he had been laying. His sword, bow, arrows, and dagger had all been cleaned, so he put them away and followed Kayl; all of the other fairies following as well. It didn't take long to get to the room (which looked like it had also been thoroughly cleaned) and as soon as they got there, Saysa and her compainons caught up to the group, carrying a lumpy bag.   
  
"Here ya go," Saysa gave Link the bag of Arlia blooms, grinning ear to ear. "I'm so sorry for hurting you...having a spell on me is a pathetic excuse...are you sure this is all you want? It seems so small a reward for such a great guy..."  
  
"Oh, stop it," Link said, "These blooms are fine and you had no control of yourself...so don't worry about it. Thanks for these, by the way..." said Link, gesturing towards the bag.  
  
"Thank you" said Kayl. She turned to the the group of fairies.  
  
"The hero must now return to his home. Let's all give him a proper farewell." All the fairies made noise again, but this time Kayl let them go for a while. Some clapped, but mostly Link just heard, "goodbyethankyousafejourneyfarewellthankyou..." And finally Kayl told them to be quiet.  
  
"You're welcome," Link said, smiling. "the next time a vampire tries to take over you...don't let it, okay? You're all a lot more capable than you think...believe me, I've seen what fairies in large numbers can do. If you ever need help, come to Hyrule castle, straight east from here, okay? Good-bye."  
  
Kayl summoned the vine, and had it take her and Link both to the top of Fairie's Pool in a bubble. When they got to the top, the vine put them down and went back to the pool. The bubble popped and Kayl turned to Link.  
  
"Thanks again, Link." Said the fairy.  
  
"Oh, cut it out...I think I've been thanked quite enough, thank you." Link realized what he had said and they both laughed a little.   
  
"Which way is east?" Link asked when they stopped laughing. He had completely lost his bearings.  
  
"That way," said Kayl, pointing. "Safe journey."   
  
"Thanks." Link smiled and walked off in that direction, eager to get back to the castle. When he looked back, the fairy was gone, lost in the mist.  
  
"Well, maybe Zelda won't kill me too bad when she sees the Arlias I got..." Link smiled and continued through the mist towards Hyrule Castle.  
  
Thank you for reading! The next chapter elaborates on the dragonlord thing and is packed with battles and dragons! Hey, I drew some art for this story, by the way. If you want it, click on this link: http:t, so just e-mail me or include it in your review if you have anything to say. If the pic that shows up doesn't cover most of the screen than it's a preview. Just click on it to get the bigger version. Once again, thanks ofor reading! I hope you liked it enough (or hated it enough) to review. -Talonclawfange 


	2. Duels and Dragons 1,2,3

ubDuels and Dragons/b/u  
  
By: Sonnet aka Talon  
  
( E-mail me at Talonofday@yahoo.com, but not if you're going to give me sick advertisements! I DONT WANT THEM!! I'M ONLY 16! Just feedback, please.)  
  
  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Hyrule, Link, Epona, Zelda, or anything else from Shigeru Miamoto and Nintendo's genius video game: Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. I wrote this story in dedication to them, since it's from the best video game of all time, created by them. The only things I own are North Hyrule, the Dragonlord, Raykel, and all other things not in the original video game (so don't use em' without asking me and putting that I thought them up). I also wrote this because I like reading, drawing, and recently writing fantasy (all talents are given to me by God, so all credit goes to him as well). I think Link is really cool - Good job, Miyamoto!   
  
Note: This story is about 32 pages long. This story takes place after my first one: The Problem of the Swamp Fairies, so you may want to read that one first. By the way, this story is somewhere between PG and PG-13, there's no sexual themes or foul language, but there's violence and some blood. Enjoy!  
  
buSection 1  
  
Dragon Surprise/u/b  
  
It was nearing sunset by the time Link arrived at Lon-Lon Ranch for his visit with Malon. He usually visited his friends often, but it was only the second time that week; it had been a very full week. It was Eightday (In the Hylian calendar, there are ten days) and six dragons had attacked Zelda that week! Link hardly had any time to do anything lately but help repair the damage the dragons had done to the castle. Dragons were attacking so often that Link wondered if more than one of them would be sent next time. Link didn't know where they were coming from, but knew if he didn't stop whoever was sending them, the evil person might send two or three, and Link wasn't so sure he could defeat two or three dragons at the same time. He supposed it depended on how big and strong they were...but he couldn't worry about that at the moment. He had decided earlier that day to have a nice carefree visit with his friend, Malon. In the gradually fading light, the ranch's wooden doorway-like entrance looked dark and peaceful. There were stone walls around this entrance to protect the ranch, but Link recalled the many times the ranch had been in danger despite these...  
  
Link walked into the ranch and saw Malon standing in her usual spot, watching the horses. She turned and saw Link coming. Her hair was red as ever, and the sun was barely high enough to peek over the walls of the ranch and shine on it, making it look like fire. Her pink and white dress fluttered in a gentle breeze.  
  
"Hi, Link!" Malon's face lit up with a pretty smile and she ran over to Link, giving him a quick hug. "How come you didn't come on Sixday? I was getting worried!" Malon interrupted Link just as he was about to answer her question."Oh, I know! It was the dragons, wasn't it?" Malon stopped talking and looked at the ground sadly.  
  
"Yes, I had to repair damage they..." Link trailed off, noticing the look on Malon's face. "What's wrong, Malon?"  
  
"Link..." Malon looked up at Link and he was surprised to see how extremely sad she looked. "Link, you may think that all this defeating dragon stuff is your job...but... what if you die, Link?!"  
  
"What?" Link was caught off-guard by her words. "Well, it is my job, Malon...if I don't protect Zelda, the dragons will take her triforce and give it to whoever is sending them! You don't want a repeat of what Ganon did to Hyrule, do you? I know the dragons are being controlled...they all have glowing bands on their wrists which seem to hold a spell over them. Trust me Malon, the dragons' master will take the triforce if I don't get in his...or it's way!"  
  
"I guess your right..." Malon said dejectedly, still looking very sad. Link sighed.  
  
"Malon, look..." he walked up to her and hugged her, "I'm not going to die, alright? I can't afford to. If I do, then all the things that mean anything to me will be destroyed...so I can't let myself die, okay? I simply must defend Hyrule. It's what I was put here for." Malon looked up at him and smiled.   
  
"I guess you're right..." she repeated, "I'm sorry for doubting you, Link." Malon's face was very close to Link's and he began to feel uncomfortable, so he released his embrace and stepped back. Malon started laughing.  
  
"What?" Link looked at her suspiciously.  
  
"It's just the way you said that...'it's iwhat/i I was iput/i here ifor/i'."  
  
"I didn't say it like that!" Link said.  
  
"Yes you did! And you looked so iserious/i." Malon made a funny version of a serious face.  
  
"Hey! Don't you know how to be serious? Hmf! Well...uh...any chores I can help with? We don't have much daylight left."  
  
"Nope! I'll just put the animals in their stalls and then we can relax for awhile."  
  
Link helped Malon with the horses, cows, and cuccos (an animal similar to a chicken), and then they sat under a tree just outside the ranch and watched the sunset. Link enjoyed most of it, but as it became dark, Link's thoughts strayed to the fact that dragons had only attacked at night so far. With all the attacks, Link expected one would come tonight. iI really need to get some sleep/i...Link thought. Naturally, Link couldn't sleep well with the knowledge that a dragon could be coming, so he had gotten little rest that week, but now he realized how tired he was. Even with the threat of a dragon bothering him, Link's eyes grew heavy. As the sun's last rays disappeared behind the horizon, Link fell asleep.  
  
Malon looked over at her friend, and discovered him dozing. iHow weird! Link never fell asleep like this before...but then he must not have gotten much sleep with the dragons and such./i Malon looked at her friend fondly. iMan, he's so cute! I can't believe he me gave me a hug! He usually takes 'em but never gave me one 'till today!/i Malon blushed with pleasure. iMaybe he likes me just like I like him! /iThen she regretfully yanked herself out of the clouds. iNaw../i.Malon remembered how he pulled away when she had looked up at him. iBut it's nice to have him for a friend./i Malon's thoughts were disturbed as she heard the animals in the ranch stalls go berserk, with squawking, neighing, and mooing.   
  
Malon jumped up and ran into the ranch. She would have awakened Link, but knew how tired he was, and thought she could calm the animals herself. Probably one horse got bored and started fighting another, and when that happened, all of the animals got noisy. She could easily calm them down with carrots; she thought as she reached the stall door.i But what if its a.../i Malon stopped suddenly. The animals always went crazy when a dragon was getting close to the castle. iNo... It's too early for that! Dragons come late at night... but what if it is? /iJust as Malon turned to go and wake up Link, she heard a flapping sound and looked behind her in the sky. A dragon was coming straight for her! It was bigger than two cows and had evilly red eyes. Its dark blue scales gleamed in the moonlight and its black wings were far darker than the blackness of the night sky. Something orange shined on the dragon's left wrist, but what caught Malon's eyes were the dragon's long, white, teeth, displayed in a hungry grin. It terrified her. How?! She wondered, panicking. iI don't have the Triforce of Wisdom! That's the one Link said they were after, so why is a dragon after me?!/i Malon turned and ran from the dragon. It swooped down and picked her up, flying high off the ground.  
  
"AAAAhhhhhhhhh!!!" Malon screamed bloody murder as the dragon took her into the air.  
  
"Zzzzzz....hm? What the?!" Link awoke with a start when Malon's scream reached his ears. He jumped up and stared open-mouthed at the dragon which had flown above him, suspended in the sky with a wriggling Malon in its grip. "What on Earth?! PUT HER DOWN!" Link yelled furiously.   
  
"bHahahahaah!/b" The dragon laughed in its sardonic, rough voice. "bPut her down? Why don't you make me, you pest? Fight me like the hero you think you are! Battle me, you coward!/b"  
  
Link wondered why a dragon would attack him and Malon and not Zelda (however he was glad the dragon was attacking him and Malon rather than Zelda, she had only the soldiers to protect her at the moment, and sometimes they didn't do such a great job), and why it chose such an early time; but he ignored the dragon's comments and drew his bow and an arrow.  
  
"bOooooo! A bent toothpick bow and a puny twig arrow! Whatever shall I d-/b" The creature was so involved in it's comeback that it paid no heed to Link, and it's words were cut off as a fire arrow (Link had turned his arrow to a fire one while the dragon was yapping) struck it's flapping left wing. The dragon roared, let go of Malon, and fell through the air, madly flapping its wings - trying to stay airborne. Link ran under Malon; and she fell, screaming extremely loud, right into his arms. The impact threw them to the ground, but neither of them was hurt. Malon got off Link and he got to his feet.  
  
"Thanks, Link." Malon was saying, but Link was already running off to where the dragon had fallen. He drew his sword, determined this time to not kill the dragon, but to destroy the bracelet controlling it. All of the other times the battles had been too quick and fierce to do anything but fight, but now Link saw his chance.  
  
The dragon got up, it's singed left wing drooping, and snarled at Link.  
  
"bYes, fight me! Come right to your death, you foolish human/b!"  
  
"What, do you want the Triforce of Courage and the Triforce of Wisdom now? Your master is getting greedy, isn't he?"  
  
"bHow dare you talk about my master that way! He wants the Wisdom more than the Courage, the only reason I'm attacking you before Zelda is that he wants you dead! You always get in the way! I'll kill you!/b" iAha, a dragon finally mentioned its master!/i Thought Link, iSo they are being controlled! I knew it! /iHis thoughts were interrupted as deadly flames shot from the dragon's mouth, aiming to fry him. Link quickly raised his mirror shield, and the dragon's flames were deflected right back into the creature's face. This dragon was not a fire element dragon, so it was not immune to it's own attack. It roared in pain and collapsed, it's face so burnt it was black.  
  
iIt can't possibly be that easy,/i Link knew, iEven if this dragon is small, it should be harder to beat than that!/i Link walked cautiously toward the dragon, thinking maybe it was unconscious and he could destroy the bracelet. He noticed the dragon was breathing as he got closer, so it had to be unconscious, right? Link was wrong. Malon screamed as the dragon got up suddenly and launched itself at Link. Link raised his shield, but the dragon grabbed it with one clawed hand, and pulling it away from Link, the dragon bit him, digging his teeth into Link's shoulder.  
  
Link yelled in pain, but fortunately, the dragon's teeth didn't get very deep before Link drove his sword into the beast's chest. It let out a roar of agony, which ended in a gurgle of blood as it spilled from the creature's throat. It collapsed again, but this time it was no longer breathing. The light in the orange jewel set into the dragon's bracelet slowly faded into blackness. Link picked up his shield, and turned to Malon, with a worried look on his face.  
  
"Malon, are you alright? Did it hurt you?" He ran over to her, completely ignoring his tore-up shoulder.  
  
"Link, I'm fine, and you should be worrying about yourself! If your shoulder had been bitten any harder, I think your arm would fall off!" She looked at him seriously.  
  
"What? I don't have time to be worrying about that! What if a dragon is attacking Zelda right now and that small one was sent to distract me? I have to go!"  
  
"Small, Link?! Small like a dog is small to an ant!...Hey! Wait for me!" Link had called Epona and was mounting her. "Link, I want to come too!"  
  
"Malon, you can't come; what if a dragon grabs you again? This dragon didn't leave you out of our fight, so why should another one? Then I'll have two girls to save! Just stay at your ranch - I don't think they'll come for you if I'm not around." He looked towards the castle. "Epona, take me to the castle, please. Quickly!" With that, Epona and Link raced off towards the castle as fast as possible.  
  
"Be careful, Link..." Malon muttered to his disappearing back.  
  
buSection 2  
  
The Captain of the Royal Guard/u/b  
  
Link rode Epona all the way to the castle gate, even though a few soldiers protested on the way. When he got there he jumped off Epona and ran to Zelda's room where he figured she was probably waiting for dinner about this time. He stopped in front of the door and knocked.  
  
"Zelda! Are you being attacked by a dragon?" Zelda came to the door and opened it, giving Link a weird look. "Why do you think I'm being attac-" She stopped in the middle of her sentence. "Link, just look at your shoulder! What happened?" Link sighed in relief.  
  
"Whew...I though they might have sent one after both of us..."  
  
"You mean you were attacked by a dragon just now? Are you okay?!"  
  
"I'm okay...sorry for bothering you. I'll just have the doctors check this...eh?? What's that noise?" Link and Zelda strained their ears, and faintly made out the sound of flapping wings. "Uh-oh...that doesn't sound too good." Link ran past Zelda and across her room (which was a really big, pretty room) to her window and saw a red dragon coming. It was a little bigger than the one that tried to kill Link, and it was flying strait for Zelda's window.  
  
"Link, don't worry! My father posted archers on the castle walls above my room. They'll take care of that dragon!" Zelda ran out onto the balcony hanging outside her room (It was about forty feet above the ground, and to the right of it was the balcony hanging off of Link's room) and yelled up to the guards to shoot the dragon.  
  
"We see it, your highness!" One yelled down to her. "It's about to come into our range!" The guards raised their bows, and aimed at the dragon. All twelve of them had been training for a month, so by now they all had very good aim. "FIRE" Shouted a guard (Link thought it sounded like the captain of the Royal Guard) and twelve swift, sharp arrows were flying towards the dragon. The dragon was not very fast, so even though it tried, it couldn't dodge the arrows. Every single one of them hit. The dragon went down with rage in it's eyes, staring straight at Zelda; screaming as well as it could with two arrows in it's neck, "bCURSE YOU! I will get the triforce for my master! Arggghhh/b!" Then the dragon hit the ground, dying on impact.  
  
The guards on the wall cheered, and Link was relieved that he didn't have to fight a dragon with his bitten shoulder, which he noticed was bleeding on Zelda's balcony. "Yikes!" He put a hand over the bite. "Sorry about your floor, Zelda!"  
  
"Just go and get that treated, okay? I don't care about my floor that much, and I don't think any more dragons are coming tonight."  
  
"Okay..." Link looked up at the guards. "Hey! Nice aim, guys! I couldn't have done any better myself!"  
  
"Of course not!" Yelled down Raykel, the captain of the Royal Guard, who didn't like Link taking his place as the princess's bodyguard (he would be the King's bodyguard, but the king had only his very most trusted five soldiers for that, and none of them wanted to be captain of the Royal Guard, so Raykel was). "My men can shoot a dragon's neck from three hundred yards away! You're lucky we were around, or the dragon would have eaten the rest of your shoulder!"  
  
"Raykel! How dare you speak to my bodyguard that way!" Zelda warned, "If I ever hear you say something like that again, you'll lose your job! Link protects me better than you ever did! Where were you the first night a dragon attacked me? I bet you were sleeping!"  
  
"No, your highness! I meant no disrespect, your majesty!" Raykel was good at sucking up to Zelda so he wouldn't get in trouble.  
  
"Good!" Zelda still looked mad. "I know you're a skilled warrior, Raykel, but if you ever use your skill against Link and you're not in an official contest, I swear you'll lose more than just your job!"  
  
"Y-Yes, your highness!" Now he wasn't sucking up, he was afraid.  
  
"Relax, Zelda!" Link tried to calm her down, "No harm done...you don't have to scare the pants off the guy! Anyways, I'll see you at dinner, if this bite is treated by then."   
  
"Alright, see you later, Link."  
  
Link went to the infirmary and had some Arlia used on his shoulder, which worked just fine because the wound wasn't deep. The doctor said he got wounded so often that he should carry an enchanted Arlia bud with him all the time, so Link took one when he left to go eat dinner.   
  
While Link was eating dinner with the Royal Family (which was a great honor given to very few, but they didn't mind having the Hero of Time eat with them at all. Raykel was very jealous) Link discussed the dragon attacks with Zelda quietly. They decided it was time that they started training together, because it was probably the only way they could learn to use the power of their triforces. Zelda asked her father if it was okay, and he said as long as Link didn't go too far and hurt her, she could train with him. She said that was ridiculous, and their training would start tomorrow morning, after she contacted Rauru, the Sage of Light, telepathically for advice.   
  
Zelda also thought she would try contacting Impa through the link they had with each other from both being sages, even though the last time she tried, it didn't work. Zelda greatly missed Impa, who had gone on a mysterious trip without saying anything but 'Goodbye, I must leave now but I will be back so don't worry about me. Get Link to be your bodyguard and you'll be fine without me'. Zelda remembered how she used to train with Impa before Ganon had taken over. Since Impa left, Raykel had been her bodyguard until the dragon attack. Now she didn't trust the man at all.  
  
The next morning, Raykel woke up, got dressed, and went up to the castle wall above Zelda's room to tell the guards they were off-duty until twelve that night, like usual (Raykel's men guarded the wall from six to twelve, and the second in charge (the one who would take Raykel's place if anything happened), Sohran, and his eleven men guarded from twelve to six; and in the daytime the wall wasn't guarded, because dragons hadn't come in the daytime). "Yes, sir!" said Sohran, saluting. "We'll see you tonight, sir!" Raykel watched as Sohran and his men left the wall. Sohran was a twenty-year-old man with blondish-brown short hair. He was optimistic, and very loyal to the king. He was considered to be the second best warrior in the Royal Guard, but Link wasn't in these calculations, since he had never been in a Warrior Contest, which was a contest held by the king every year. The contest was always held around this time of year, so every soldier was anticipating it. Almost all of Hyrule came to see it, and for five years in a row, Sohran had held second place, and Raykel had held first.  
  
After relieving Sohran, Raykel went to have breakfast in the soldier's barracks. Raykel had put on his blue Royal Guard clothes and his Royal Guard armor, which shimmered in the sun like silver because it had been polished many times. The armor covered his chest, his back, his upper arms, and all of his legs. He had a bracer on his right wrist, and the rest of his arms were covered in thick leather. He also had a helmet, but he usually left it off. He was thirty-eight, and a tall man, way over six feet, and was strong, fast, and skilled. He had dark black hair, which he had grown to his shoulders, and a neat mustache. He was well-groomed all of the time, feeling the need to set an example to the other soldiers, and he was an excellent leader. Although he didn't know most of his soldiers very well, they respected his skills and followed his strong lead. There was only one soldier that Raykel liked more than the others, and that was his personal apprentice, Cosha. They didn't have a whole lot of time to train, though.  
  
With a little help from Sohran, Raykel trained a group of twenty-five soldiers every two days in the courtyard, and trained the other group of twenty-five every other day (there were a total of fifty-eight Royal Guards. Hyrule Army officers trained the rest of Hyrule's soldiers, and there were about one hundred and seventy of them). They trained from seven to three.  
  
After breakfast, Raykel took Group One to the courtyard for training (the courtyard was a very large, grassy area surrounded by castle walls. It could easily be big enough to train one or two hundred men at once) when Raykel got there, he saw the normal soldiers from the army training. But he saw something on the far side of the courtyard that he thought didn't look right. Were those two soldiers out of uniform? He looked closer and was surprised to see Link and Zelda training with each other! He would have yelled at Link for daring to train with a member of the Royal Family, but knew he shouldn't even talk to Link when Zelda was around. He knew he would get in trouble because the thirty-eight-year old man couldn't stand a fifteen-year-old taking his job, and he didn't think he could bear to say anything nice to Link.  
  
For four hours Raykel trained with his men, trying to ignore Link and Zelda on the other side of the training area. iWhy didn't Zelda ever want to train with me?!/i He thought furiously, iI'm a much better leader than Link! Someday that little brat will get what's coming to him, and if Impa hasn't come home yet, Zelda will come running back to me!/i  
  
At the end of four hours of vigorous training, which had gone quite well, Raykel told his men it was time to rest for half an hour. Raykel sat down, but noticed two of his men were quarreling.  
  
"Hey! You stepped on my foot, you idiot!"  
  
"No I didn't, you twit! Your delusional!"  
  
"Get out of my face, you funky rabbit!"  
  
"How dare you, you perverted skultulla!" It was like watching two one year olds.  
  
"You two call yourselves Royal Guards?! Be quiet and sit down before I stick you both in an empty room together and make you stay there for an hour!!" Raykel yelled.  
  
"Ahhh! No! Anything but that!" one cried.  
  
"Calm down! It's not even funny to say things like that! We'll quit arguing, I swear!"  
  
"Good. Keep it that way." Raykel said irritably.  
  
Raykel had noticed that Zelda and Link rested every two hours for ten minutes, but they weren't resting right now, so Raykel watched them training on the other side of the army soldiers.  
  
While he watched them, Raykel realized that the training was completely safe, because Link and Zelda couldn't hurt each other with the attacks they were using. Link was using his sword, which had light magic in it, so it couldn't hurt the pure-hearted Zelda. Zelda was using her light magic, which couldn't hurt the pure-hearted Link. That way, even if one of them made a mistake, they probably would be just fine. Despite that, it looked like they were training very hard, Zelda shooting blasts of magic at Link, Link dodging and slashing at Zelda, her blocking with a magic shield...It looked like they were both getting stronger and faster. iGet all the training you want, Link... /iRaykel thought darkly. iYou'll need it at this year's Warrior Contest!/i  
  
buSection 3  
  
The Annual Warrior Contest/u/b  
  
"Whew, I think it's about time to quit, Link." Zelda, breathing hard, plopped herself down on the grass. She was glad that for once she could sit on the ground, because she wasn't wearing a dress. She was wearing some foresty-looking green and brown clothes, embroidered in some places with gold ivy-looking plants. Zelda always wore clothes similar to this when she did things with Link, because she knew activities with him would probably involve running, or something else you couldn't wear a dress in. That was one of the things she loved about spending time with him. Wearing a dress all the time got annoying. The king didn't like the idea of Zelda not looking like a proper princess, but ever since Zelda tore her dress when she went jumping on Epona with Link, the king agreed that she could wear other things.  
  
"That was really fun, Zelda! I'm glad we'll be training tomorrow!" Link said, sitting next to her.  
  
"Fun but tiring," Zelda agreed, "I think I have better aim after all that! It was definitely a good idea." The sun was almost down, so they watched the sunset together. One of Link's favorite things to do was watch sunsets with a friend, and didn't want it ruined like yesterday, so he was careful not to fall asleep this time.  
  
"Do you think a dragon will come tonight?" Link questioned the princess.  
  
"It's hard to say...but I would keep my sword by my bed if I were you."  
  
"I always do, dragon or not. What would really be bad is if three dragons came! I don't think we could handle it!"  
  
"Don't be so pessimistic! I don't think they're that mad at us yet. I sure hope they stop coming for awhile, because the Warrior Contest is coming up, and you need to get some sleep!"  
  
"Who said I was entering it?" Link asked. He didn't think so fondly of the idea of trying to defeat his allies. Training was fun, but he had heard that competitions could really heat up at the Warrior Contest.  
  
"Why not, Link? I don't think Raykel respects you much, so maybe he will if you beat him!"  
  
"And what if he decides he hates my guts even more? I don't think I want to fight someone who hates me, unless I'm allowed to defend myself without worrying about injuring a companion. Ganon hated me, and I had to injure him. Raykel hates me...what if he forces me to do the same to him? Or what if I get caught up in the moment and force him to do the same to me? I don't like the idea..."  
  
"Oh, Link! I don't think he'll be challenging enough to force you to hurt him. He isn't so great... I bet he'd turn his tail and run if a dragon ever came within thirty feet of him!" Zelda looked at Link with a smile. "And you defeated one without needing anyone else's help! C'mon... you can take him! I know for a fact that you're not scared."  
  
"Of course not...but I'd have to hurt my friends! A lot of the soldiers who have and probably will enter the contest are very nice, and I'm sure Raykel is a cool guy, despite his dislike for me. Why should I fight in the contest? I have nothing to prove!"  
  
"Sure you do! Raykel will keep putting you down if you don't put him in his place." Link thought on her words for a moment.  
  
"You know, maybe your right. Perhaps if I show him how I fight, he wont treat me like a kid...who knows, maybe we'll become friends!"  
  
"That's the spirit! And don't worry about receiving deadly injuries, because if a soldier gives another soldier a deadly blow on purpose he'll be disqualified, and Raykel would never give up his precious first place. If you ask me, Sohran's the better warrior. He's had second place ever since he was fifteen!"  
  
"Wow, that's really good. I'd like to train with a guy like that!"  
  
"Hey, your fifteen...maybe you could pick up the tradition of holding a place, except you'll probably get first, not second."  
  
"Think so? We'll see...anyway, don't you think we should be going inside? It's getting dark, and your father will send a soldier out to give you a lecture again soon..."  
  
"Okay... sheesh, I don't know why father still treats me like a baby, " Zelda said. "At dinner we can ask him when the contest will be."  
  
"On iSixday/i, father? Don't you think it should be a bit later? That's only six days for the men to prepare! In the past you've given them months..." Zelda's father interrupted her complaining.  
  
"Sweetie, I think that if we don't have the contest soon, dragons will destroy the courtyard it's held in! We were lucky the soldiers could take down the dragon last night, or who knows what damage it could have done!" The king thought a moment. "Although I am glad they have been doing more damage to the castle than the people living in and defending it, that may change - all the more reason to hold the contest early this year!" The king looked at Zelda for her reply, and she sighed.  
  
"You are right, of course...it's just a pity that these irksome dragons are messing up an event that every person in Hyrule anticipates. The soldiers will just have to do their best with what little time they have, I suppose."  
  
"Indeed. So, Link... are you entering this year?" The king looked over at Link, who was playing with his food more than eating it.  
  
"Um..." Link glanced at Zelda. "Yes, I'm entering it, your highness."  
  
"Excellent! I understand that there are soldiers who doubt your right to guard my daughter. I'm sure they'll see at the contest just how capable a warrior you are."  
  
"Well, I'll do my best. I wouldn't want to disappoint you."  
  
"Great! I'm sure this will be a contest to remember!" The king laughed merrily.  
  
"Father loves his fighting contests..." Zelda said quietly to Link.  
  
iBeautiful../i.Link growled to himself silently, inow I'm going to be REALLY embarrassed if I lose! This was going to fun, but now the entire Royal Family will be watching me! Talk about pressure...shoot, Malon and Saria will probably be there too!/i  
  
Link made an irritated face and resumed playing with his food.  
  
***  
  
Link decided that the only way for him to prepare for the Warrior Contest was to continue training with Zelda, so he did. On every day from Tenday to Fiveday, Link trained with Zelda (mostly Zelda, but she had trained as Sheik once or twice). Every day the training became more intense and more fun. Link had no idea he would get so much enjoyment from fighting and improving with Zelda. But it wasn't just that, they talked and joked while they were training, and everyday they came a little closer to discovering how to use their triforces, thanks in part to Rauru's helpful advice. Whenever she contacted Rauru, Zelda also tried to contact Impa, but every single time she got no reply. Zelda was becoming quite distressed about this, and said to Link that if she failed to contact Impa a few more times, she would have her father send search parties all over Hyrule to look for her. Zelda also told Link that she had always watched the Warrior Contest with Impa, but Impa had never entered. Why, Zelda didn't know or care; she just wanted to see Impa again, and soon.  
  
"Hey, if the soldiers don't find Impa in Hyrule, I'll look for her while I'm exploring North Hyrule, okay?" Link tried to console his friend. "If she's there, I'm sure she'll show herself to me if I come by her."   
  
"Thanks, Link...I think about her every time I turn into Sheik, every time I think of the contest, every time I do anything she used to help me with... I really miss her. I'm glad I have you to keep me company." Zelda smiled over at Link.  
  
"Ah, don't go corny on me again..." Zelda's reply was laughing.  
  
"Hey, I'm not joking! You may be a 'loner warrior' kind of guy, but if I have no one to talk to, I get very bored."  
  
"Loner, huh? Just because I'm alone a lot doesn't mean I enjoy it. I get lonely sometimes too, y'know? Navi and Saria were the only ones I could talk to before the Deku Tree told me I was destined to leave the Kokiri Forest...I'm definitely glad I left that place. It was nice and all, but so boring! When I wasn't arguing with Mido or hanging out with Saria there was nothing to do. Well, break's over! Lets get back to training, shall we? The contest is tomorrow." Link stood up and drew his sword.  
  
"Thank goodness the dragons have left us alone this long! It's like we got just what we needed...pretty weird, huh? Lets get back to taking advantage of our good luck!" Zelda got up, and resumed training with Link. They both knew they were stronger than they had been before. Somehow, training between two triforce holders worked extremely well...or at least it seemed that way to both of them. While they had been training for the past six days, Zelda had continued convincing Link of how cool the Warrior Contest was, and now he was glad he had decided to enter it. In fact, he could hardly wait for tomorrow.  
  
The day turned out to be another successful one in the training department, and Link finally retired to bed after dinner. At first he was anxious, anticipating the contest and wondering if a dragon would attack, but none did, and soon he fell into a deep sleep.   
  
"Curses, and curses again!" shouted the Dragonlord. "Why won't you wretched creatures come?" He glared at the portal like a man glares at another before striking him.  
  
"bCalm yourself, Master. I assure you, the portal simply needs time to recharge its magical powers!/b" A middle-sized (about the size of a one-story house) dragon tried to calm his master. The dragon had shimmering black scales with dark green horizontal stripes, with green highlights on it's snout, paws, feet, and tail. There were soft, green skin-spikes running along the dragon's back, face, and arms, and its underside was covered in armor-like, thick light-yellow scales. It had big, light-green wings and twisted ivory-colored horns. It was a magic-using dragon, and had a yellow jewel-like scale in its forehead.  
  
"I know that, you scaled moron! I only summoned two dragons, so why does the bloody thing have to take more than a stinking half a week to recharge?!"  
  
"bMaster, I would remind you that every time more than one dragon is summoned, the portal must rest...but after that rest, you can summon two dragons and it wont have to recharge. If you summon three, however, it will.../b"  
  
"Shut UP, Dakos! Do you think I didn't know that? When my master helped me get this portal he explained everything to me - I don't need an overgrown lizard reminding me!"  
  
"bYou're right, sire. Forgive me./b" The dragon turned away from the Dragonlord, offended and ashamed. "bI was wrong to assume that your memory isn't perfect./b"  
  
Dakos tried to make it sound like he really meant what he was saying.  
  
"That's more like it. The portal should be charged by tomorrow, and I will need you to carry me to Hyrule castle. And to trust you to carry me, I need your complete obedience."  
  
"bOf course, Master. Wait...did you just say we were going to the castle? Master, isn't that too risky? They took down Oraal, the last dragon you sent, with arrows!/b"  
  
"Relax, and try to listen to me this time. You are a very good flyer, so you can fly high, out of range."  
  
"bBut sire...if were too high, than you wont be able to attack anything, so what's the point/b?"  
  
"You thick-skulled dragon! Too high to attack? HAH! I have my long-range weapons."  
  
"bBut so does Link! He can shoot his arrows farther than other soldiers, I'm sure. Won't he hit us/b?"  
  
"No..because he will be distracted by the next dragon I'm going to summon. I'll need the queen's help with this one...it'll be a huge energy-element dragon! I probably won't even need to go with it...hehehe - we'll have the Triforce of Wisdom this time!"  
  
"bA brilliant plan, Master...but how will you get the queen to help you? She's unwilling/b."  
  
"I have my ways of convincing her. I'll do it right now, in fact." The Dragonlord turned from the portal and walked away from Dakos. The room Dakos was in was the Dragonlord's summoning room, and had little decoration. It was a huge room with walls, floor, and ceiling all made of black stone, like most of the rooms in the fortress. The only things worth mentioning in the room were some dragons carved into the walls, a soft chair by the portal, and the portal. The Dragon Summoning Portal was very large, and almost touched the ceiling of the enormous room. It was a big, coin-shaped, magical doorway though which only dragons could pass. Its rim was silvery-gray, and it had a big, orange jewel set into the top of it. It reminded Dakos of a giant mirror, since one could see himself if he looked into it's center. The center of the portal looked like a huge, rippling pool with a very shiny surface, but it was really a magic substance that summoned dragons instantly.   
  
Dakos looked down on the floor and realized the Dragonlord had left his Summoning Staff. It was black, and had an orange jewel on top of it. As long as the Dragonlord possessed his staff and his headpiece, he could summon and control dragons. After getting the queen to put them under a spell, the Dragonlord put a bracelet onto their left wrist, and this bracelet allowed the Dragonlord to, with his staff, control the dragon completely. Without the bracelet on the dragon, he only had partial control. Dakos was the only dragon the Dragonlord hadn't put a bracelet on, since he was loyal as long as the Dragonlord held his queen. The Queen had had a bracelet put on her while she was sleeping, and now was mostly under the Dragonlord's control...but not entirely. She was a queen of dragons, so she would be hard to control. It would take some convincing to get her to put a spell on an energy-element dragon. Dakos sighed, wishing his queen was free, but if he tried anything, the Dragonlord had the power to destroy her. Dakos would gladly serve the Dragonlord if he promised his queen's safety. The Dragonlord had been treating his queen nice enough...giving her comfortable living quarters, and feeding her well, so Dakos was very loyal to the Dragonlord. Dakos picked up the magic staff in his teeth, and ran to give it to the Dragonlord before he reached the Queen.  
  
***  
  
The day of the Warrior Contest arrived. Link awoke before the sun had risen, to the sound of a knock on his door.  
  
"Yes?" He called sleepily, getting out of bed. A voice came from behind the door.  
  
"Time to get up, Link! The contest will start in a few hours!" Zelda came into the room.  
  
"Ack! Zelda, I'm not dressed!"  
  
"Oops!" Zelda blushed and she quickly turned around to face the door. "I'll come back when your done.."  
  
"No, you can stay. Just...don't turn around before I tell you I'm dressed."   
  
"Okay. Do you know the rules of the contest, Link?" Link was pulling on his tunic.  
  
"Ah...not really, I guess."  
  
"Alright - don't worry, they're simple enough to learn right now. Each match will take place in a square-shaped ring. The soldiers are supposed to stay inside the ring, but if you're thrown out, you have fifteen seconds to get back into it, or you'll lose. The match is fought until one of the two soldiers is knocked unconscious or gives up. And then the next two soldiers are up. There is no healing between rounds, so don't bring your Arlia. You can wear any armor you want, and pick one weapon of choice to fight with." Zelda explained. Link decided without thought that he would fight with the Silver Sword (his sword that looks like the Master Sword, which had been returned to the pedestal, but had a silver hilt rather than a purple-blue one. It was the one that Zelda had put light magic into, the one he had used while training with her).  
  
"Armor, huh? Couldn't I just bring my shield?"  
  
"Yes, if your not wearing armor, they'll allow you to bring a shield."  
  
"Good...armor slows me down too much. I'm dressed now." Link started making his bed. He didn't think making beds was very necessary, but didn't want his room to look dirty in front of Zelda. He sat on his bed when he was done and Zelda joined him.  
  
"What about magic?" Link inquired. "Can I bring my spells or anything?"  
  
"Only one magic attack per man is allowed," Zelda replied "and you must declare which magic attack you'll use, if you have one, when you are given a number."  
  
"Okay...um, what's the number for?"  
  
"Sixteen soldiers have entered the contest this year, and each is given a number to decide which match he'll be in."  
  
"Okay, I think I understand. When is the contest starting, exactly?"  
  
"Two hours from sunrise."  
  
"Well," Link saw light beginning to spill into his room from the balcony door. "I guess the sunrise is right now. Want to watch it?"  
  
"Sure. Lets go." Zelda and Link went out onto the balcony hanging off of Link's room and watched the dawn emerge from the horizon in her elegant pink and orange dress. She let her light pour onto Hyrule like a pleasant flood. While they watched the sunrise, Zelda told Link the little she knew about Raykel and Sohran's fighting skills. She said there would probably be few soldiers with magic, but Sohran would be sure to have it. The dawn was beautiful in her glory, until the sun rose and disappeared behind a big, dark, gray cloud. It swallowed her brilliance, and only dim, gray light was left.  
  
Link and Zelda went down to have breakfast, then they had an hour of free time before the contest started, so they went out to the courtyard. There were men drawing a large fighting-ring-sized square in the grass with blue paint, distinguishing where the soldiers would fight. They were setting up a stage-looking thing and two soft-looking chairs, too. They also had a large piece of paper with a weird fork-looking drawing which started from one line, the split into two, then four, then eight, then sixteen. At the ends of the sixteen lines were the numbers one through sixteen.  
  
"That's a tournament fork," Zelda explained, "It will decide which soldier with what number will fight other soldiers."  
  
"Okay," said Link, trying to store the information away and not forget. Link and Zelda moved away from the ground-painters and trained for half an hour to warm Link up. By that time, the people of Hyrule were beginning to come into the courtyard, and soon it became too crowded with people to train. There were Hylians, Zoras, Gorons, Gerudos, and even a few Kokiri. Just as Link and Zelda decided to separate, Link to the fighting ring, and Zelda to the seats where the Royal Family would watch the tournament, Saria came over to them.  
  
"Hi, Saria!" Link greeted excitedly.  
  
"How are you, Saria?" Zelda welcomed her more quietly.  
  
"Hello!" Saria answered, standing before them. "I'm fine! How are you two?"  
  
"Great," said Zelda.  
  
"Fine." said Link. "It's been awhile since I visited you, sorry but it's been a very busy week, and so was the one before. It's a lame excuse.."  
  
"No, it's fine, Link. I had a busy week, too. Some vines were trying to grow on the new Deku Tree and live off of him, and it took us awhile to get rid of them."  
  
"Aw...I could have helped..."  
  
"No, we did fine on our own, and you have enough to worry about anyway. Good luck in the tournament!" Saria said with a big smile, "I'll be rooting for you."  
  
"And I, also." Link heard Malon's voice behind him and turned. "I'm sure you can beat the rest of the soldiers, Link!"  
  
"Hi, Malon. Thanks, guys" Link said, and went off to stand by the fighting ring, where the other soldiers were gathering.  
  
Saria and Malon followed Zelda, and stood by where she sat in her chair next to the king's. The two soft chairs were on a stage, for better viewing, and there was a shade-giving canopy that had been erected over the chairs on the stage, and Malon and Saria followed Zelda onto the stage, and they were all in the shade, in the perfect spot for watching the contest. By now the sun had emerged from the cloud that had covered it, and heat beamed down from it. There were some other huge, gray clouds in the sky that threatened rain, but none looked like they would cover the sun for a while, so the shade was very much appreciated. The King hadn't come out yet, and that meant the Contest was still a good twenty minutes from starting, so the three girls started chatting with each other.  
  
Link stood around the paper with the tournament fork on it, with some other soldiers who were gathering. There was about ten of them so far, and Link spotted his friend, Bodac.  
  
"Hey, Bodac!" Link walked up to the tall but slim brown-haired man. "Ready for the contest?"  
  
"Well, to tell you the truth, I'm a little nervous. I've entered the contest twice before, and both times I fought well, but got eliminated in the first round! I hope it will be different this time."  
  
"Me too...I think your a good fighter, so I don't see any reason why you would be eliminated in the first round."  
  
"Well, the first year I entered, I fought and lost against Maco, who retired a while ago - and last year I fought Sohran of all people, and lost pretty quick. Shoot...I bet I'll be pitted against a skilled fighter first this year, too...it's like my fate or something!"  
  
"Well, I wish you luck, anyway Bodac. Perhaps you will be pitted against a tough fighter, and beat him! You never know."  
  
"I hope your right...hey, looks like Raykel, Sohran and Cosha are coming. You know...I bet I'll get put against one of them..."  
  
"Oh, cut it out, you're so paranoid! You're not going to win any fights with that attitude! Just do your best."  
  
"Okay..." Bodac shut up and turned away from Raykel and the men walking with him, to stare at the tournament fork nervously.  
  
"Hi, Link." Sohran said, stopping in front of him. Raykel and Cosha walked past him with out even glancing at him. "I'm glad you're entering the contest this year...I always wanted to see how strong you were. All I know is that Ganondorf was very strong, and you defeated him, so you must be tough!"  
  
"Well you held second place since you were fifteen, so you must be tough, too." Link responded, smiling. Sohran smiled back, and put a hand on Link's shoulder.   
  
"Good luck, my friend. I hope you do as well as your skill deserves." Link wasn't sure if he understood what Sohran was trying to say, but recognized it as a compliment.  
  
"Thanks...you too." Link simply stood there, and Sohran removed his hand.  
  
"Well...here come the last three soldiers...the Warrior Contest will start soon. See ya in the ring, Link" Sohran said, and went to go talk with the arriving soldiers.  
  
A few minutes later, some trumpets blew, announcing the arrival of the King. The crowd cleared a path for him as he came, with four horn-blowers and ten Royal Guards behind him in two neat lines. He walked over to the stage, climbed the steps, and stood in front of the big, soft chair meant for him. The ten Royal Guards and the four trumpet men spread out around the stage to protect the King, should the need arise.  
  
"Ladies and gentlemen!" The King yelled as the crowd quieted down to hear him. "It's finally time for the eleventh annual Warrior Contest!" The people of Hyrule started cheering. One of the men helping with the contest held a bucket filled with little papers, and he walked up to the group of soldiers. "Fighters, it is time for you to draw your numbers. The contest will begin shortly." The king sat down, and watched what numbers the soldiers got. They were called over to the man with the bucket one by one. Soon Sohran was called up. He got number six, and declared he would be using a tornado magic attack. After him, Bodac was called. He drew nine. A few more soldiers were called, than Link. Link drew four, and declared he was going to use a spin attack. By looking at the tournament fork, he could see that it put him against a soldier named Paro first. Cosha and Raykel were called up. Cosha got thirteen, and Raykel got ten. Bodac moaned, realizing he would have to fight Raykel first.  
  
"Just my luck..." he muttered. The two warriors who were in the first fight went to the ring, where the referee told them to stand at opposite sides. They were Corb, a soldier Link knew to be a nice man, and some other soldier who Link didn't know. The King stood up once more.  
  
"Let the Warrior Contest begin!!!" He roared, and sat back down. 


	3. Duels and Dragons 4,5

a continuation of Duels and Dragons, by Talonclawfange  
  
buSection 4  
  
A Time for Winning and Losing/u/b  
  
The crowd cheered wildly, and all eyes went to the ring, where the soldiers started circling each other. "Who are your friends, Zelda?" The King asked his daughter.  
  
"This is Saria, and this is Malon," she said, gesturing towards each when she said their names. "Their friends of mine and Link's. Malon is Talon's daughter...you know, the guy who delivers milk, cows, and horses; and Saria is a Sage."  
  
"Oh, what an honor," the King said, smiling. "Welcome, you two."   
  
"Thanks," said Saria and Malon at the same time, and started giggling. They were about to jinx eachother but their attention was drawn to the ring. The two soldiers had started fighting.  
  
They were attacking each other with swift moves, one soldier with a sword, and the other, Corb, with a spear. Corb seemed to be the faster of the two and easily parried his opponent's attacks, countering with his own. Corb put many dents into the other soldier's armor, so the soldier jumped back, breathing heavily.  
  
"Dang, you're good." He said, and launched himself at Corb. He was larger than Corb, and attacked with enough strength that it threw him back. Corb raised his free hand and pointed it at the soldier.  
  
"FIRE!" He shouted, and a small fireball flew from his hand, speeding at the other man. It hit him with such force that he was thrown to his back, then he rolled around to put the fire out. He jumped to his feet, tired and singed, and attacked Corb. The fight went on for a little while, but it was obvious that Corb was going to win. The other soldier was tired, and the next time he was thrown to his back, he surrendered.  
  
"Corb is the winner!" The referee announced, and the crowd cheered. "Will the next two fighters, Link and Paro, come to the ring?" Corb and the other soldiers left the ring as Link jumped to his feet and entered it with Paro. Link was excited, and anxiously awaited the announcer's signal to start. Paro was a short man (but Link was shorter still), it was hard to tell how old he was or what he looked like due to his helmet. He carried a pike, and his eyes looked somewhat worried from where Link could see them in the helmet. "Begin!" The announcer shouted.  
  
"En guard!" Link shouted, as he ran at Paro.  
  
"Thanks for the warning," Paro said, bringing up his pike to parry Link's attack. The blades clashed, making a ringing sound, and Link and Paro pushed against each others blades to see who was stronger. Soon Paro was forced back, overpowered. He broke the pushing contest by knocking Link's sword away from his own blade. He tried to slash Link, but Link dodged easily. Paro tried some more, slashing at Link from many angles, as fast as he could. Link, having fun, dodged them all.  
  
"Nice!" said Link, bringing his sword up to Paro's head. Link hit Paro's helmet with the flat of his blade, making it vibrate, stunning Paro. Paro put his hand on his helmet to stop the vibrating. He shook his head as if to clear it, and came at Link. This time Link parried his blows, throwing him back as the Silver Sword clashed with Paro's pike. He stumbled and backed away. Link decided it was time to use his magic attack. He powered up his sword, but vertically rather than horizontally, so the sword would hit Paro pretty hard, but not cut through his armor and him.  
  
"Yeeeaaaa!" When the attack was charged, Link spun around and energy came from his sword. Once again the flat of his blade hit Paro, but this time it hit his chest and sent him flying out of the ring. He lay there for a moment before trying to get up. His chest hurt, but he could rise if he wanted. He decided not to, and laid back down, not desiring to be hit with the magic again.  
  
"I surrender." Paro said, staring at the sky. The referee declared Link the winner, the crowd cheered loudly, and Link walked over to Paro, and helped him up.  
  
"You alright? I tried not to use too much power." Link said. "You fought well."  
  
"I'm not hurt...just my pride, heheh. And you did some nice fighting yourself, young man. Perhaps I'll see you around." Paro walked away and Link joined Corb, who was seated and waiting for the next match to begin.   
  
The next five fights seemed to pass very quickly to Link, who was enjoying watching the soldiers test themselves against one another. The fights didn't get very personal as Link had feared; they were, except the fifth fight, relatively friendly. In the first fight, Sohran easily defeated a man Link had never seen before, and Sohran sat next to Link to watch the rest of the matches. In the next fight, a soldier Link didn't recognize beat a soldier who Link had seen around, but didn't really know. The next fight was between the proud-looking Raykel and Bodac, who was practically shivering in his boots. Raykel made it obvious that he considered his time too important to waste on Bodac, and defeated him quickly with strong attacks. After the fight, Bodac limped over to Link.  
  
"Well.... that really sucked! I don't think I'm going to enter the contest next year..." he said irritably. Link laughed.  
  
"Oh, come on...if you weren't so scared of Raykel, you would have done much better. Just train more, okay?"  
  
"Okay," Bodac muttered, "but first I'm going to the infirmary! Tell me what happens in the next fights when I get back, okay?"  
  
"Sure." Link said, "Do you need help walking?"  
  
"No, I'll be fine." Bodac limped off, and Link watched the next fight between two soldiers he didn't know. One was quick and the other strong, and it took the strong one a while to defeat the quick one. The next fight was between Cosha, Raykel's apprentice, and a soldier Link had recently become acquainted to, Dans. They fought hard, but eventually Cosha's sword was knocked out of his hands.  
  
"I have you now!" Dans said excitedly, but Cosha pulled a quick maneuver, and put himself behind Dans. He reached one hand on either side of Dans and grabbed his long ax handle. Cosha pulled on it and Dans resisted, but Cosha was stronger. He pulled back on the handle until it was up against Dan's neck.  
  
"Give up," Cosha whispered creepily into Dan's ear.  
  
"No!" Dans shouted, and Cosha brought the ax handle back, choking him. Dans tried to elbow Cosha in the stomach, but that didn't work. Eventually Dans weakened, and slumped, unconscious, to the ground. Cosha picked up his sword and walked from the ring proudly as the referee announced his victory.  
  
"Excellent, Cosha," Raykel praised his apprentice as they met outside the ring. "Just like our training." He said, looking at Cosha as if it had been some great achievement. It made Link's skin crawl, and he stood to help the paramedics carry away Dans. There was a break between every seven fights, so Link didn't miss anything while he was away. He got back to the courtyard just in time to see the next fight starting. It also was between two soldiers Link didn't know. One was pretty young, and the other was probably in his forties. The young one tired his opponent with quick strikes, and finished by knocking him out of the ring and preventing him from re-entering within fifteen seconds. The crowd cheered when the young man was announced winner, and the referee stated that the next round of matches would now begin.  
  
Link and Corb were up next, and they came to the ring.  
  
"Good luck, Link," said Corb, and added playfully, "You'll need it." Link laughed good-naturedly and the referee gave the signal to begin.   
  
"Good luck to you, too!" Link said as he dashed across the ring to introduce the Silver Sword to Corb's spear. They clashed and both men jumped back. Link then powered up his sword for the spin attack, but Corb hit the deck as Link released his attack. Corb jumped up and slashed with his spear at Link, who for the first time in the contest decided to use his shield (The Hylian shield, not the mirror shield) to block it. The men kept attacking and blocking and dodging and parrying, and soon Corb began to tire. Link was having a ball.  
  
"C'mon!" Link challenged, "I know you can go faster than that!"  
  
"Easy for you to say," Corb said breathlessly. Corb jumped back and raised his hand to point at Link. "FIRE!" Corb shouted with a grin, wondering what creative way Link would use to avoid being burnt. It really wasn't very creative at all. Link remembered Corb had the fire attack, but hadn't been ready for it at the moment, and raised his shield just in time for the ball of flames burst against it. As the ball burst, flames spread out, and Link's shoulder caught on fire.  
  
"Yow! Hey, do I look like firewood to you?" Link exclaimed, trying to smother the flames before they burnt through his tunic. When he was done with that Corb charged at him. "Whoa!" Link slashed at Corb, whose spear was thrown out of his hand as he tried to parry. His spear was thrown behind him, and he got a dent in his armor. He stood in place with his hands up. "What are you waiting for?" Asked Link. "Go get your weapon."  
  
"No, your are too good a fighter, and I'm already tired. My last chance for attack was that fireball, and I can see that it had little effect on you. I give up." The crowd went wild, especially Zelda, Saria, and Malon, when the referee said Link was the winner. Link simply complimented Corb on his fighting skills, and went to sit next to Sohran.   
  
"I can see your enjoying yourself," Sohran commented.  
  
"Yeah," Link replied, "I'm glad Zelda convinced me to enter the contest. It's been lots of fun and I'm kinda getting to know some of the soldiers better."  
  
"That's good...but I'm up next." Sohran rose and walked to the ring to face the soldier who had won the fourth fight earlier.  
  
As the fight commenced, Link heard someone approaching his back. Before Link had time to turn around, a huge hand clapped him very hard on the back, throwing him forward onto his face. As he got up, wondering if someone had attacked him, a massive hand pulled him up.  
  
"BROTHER!" Darunia the Goron roared. "How WONDERFUL it is to see you again!"  
  
"Yeah, good to see you too, Darunia..." Link said, rubbing his sore back. "Do you think you could greet me in a more gentle manner next time?"  
  
"What are you talking about?? I was being gentle!" He said loudly. Link groaned. "Good work with your fights so far!" Darunia congratulated him. "I can see your feeling very healthy!"  
  
"Well, I was feeling healthy, anyway..." Link said.   
  
"What are you talking about? Let me give you a Goron Hug!!"  
  
"Ack! No! I mean...ah, we're missing the fight! C'mon, let's watch it...maybe you can hug me later." Link said, not really wanting to get squashed in a 'Goron Hug' by Darunia's great arms, now or later.  
  
"Well, if that's the case I have to go back to the other gorons, brother. I'll see you later!"  
  
"Okay..." Link said, relieved that he had avoided getting the breath squeezed out of him. He was glad to see Darunia, but the Goron was just a little ignorant of how much stronger than a Hylian he was. Link sat down to watch the fight.  
  
Sohran was rushing at the soldier Link didn't know, and the soldier could barely move fast enough to block the blows. Eventually the man took advantage of a break in Sohran's attack (Sohran didn't seem to be tired at all despite his repeated attacks). He brought up his sword at Sohran's face, but Sohran jumped back, dodging without difficulty. By now Sohran's opponent was getting tired of blocking, so he threw some more attacks at Sohran. Sohran blocked a few but dodged most of them, and attacked when there was a break in his opponent's assault. Sohran used his speed this time, and before the soldier could bring his sword up, many blows were dealt to him, leaving dents in his armor. Sohran even hit a place where armor wasn't, and the man gasped as Sohran's sword left a slash in his skin. Sohran kept attacking the poor man, and soon he was driven out of the ring, and surrendered. The referee declared Sohran the victor, and the crowd cheered for him as he went back over to where Link was sitting.   
  
"You know," Sohran admitted, "this is more fun than I had last year. I think I'm beginning to have as much fun as you!"  
  
"Good," replied Link, "if this contest wasn't fun, I'm sure that fewer soldiers would enter it. It's weird...I don't remember who I heard it from, but someone said competition was fierce and personal in the Warrior Contest."  
  
"Oh, these are just the first matches, " Sohran said seriously, "it's the later fights that get fierce."  
  
"Shoot...and I was beginning to think the whole thing would be fun. Oh well... maybe I'll get lucky and no one will hate me after this Contest. If I'm really lucky, maybe someone will hate me less." Link and Sohran turned their attention to the fight going on, between Raykel and the strong-attacking soldier that had beaten the quick one in a previous match.   
  
"Oh, I get it...your hoping to prove yourself to Raykel so he wont treat you disrespectfully anymore. He really is a spectacular leader, but I have noticed that he always avoids the subject of you. He treats talking of you as if it will make his mouth dirty. I don't really understand his feelings for you, but I think that he feels like you took something from him," Sohran said quietly.  
  
"I hope he'll realize that I'm a worthy protector for Zelda," Link said, watching Raykel slash the other soldier's chest armor.  
  
"I think he knows you can protect her, I think he even knows that you can protect her better than he can, but he probably thinks it's dishonorable to lose a job you've worked towards for over eighteen years to a fifteen-year-old. No offense about your age, of course. I myself am very young to be second in command." Sohran was partially distracted by Raykel's punch throwing his stout opponent out of the ring, to land roughly flat on his back.  
  
"No offense taken," said Link, slow to respond because he was also distracted.  
  
The strong man got up and ran at Raykel, but Raykel just brought the fist of his free hand down onto the man's helmet. The man, tough but not tough enough, fell backwards, unconscious.  
  
"Raykel uses his fists as much as his sword..." Link observed, "His arm muscles must be pretty strong to knock a man out through a helmet."  
  
"He is very strong, I have fought him many times and always lost. It would be annoying to lose to him so much if I didn't recognize him as my leader. It's too bad he wont let you get close to him, Link. He really isn't so bad. A bit too ambitious, maybe...but very capable."  
  
"Looks like Cosha's up next. Hey, who is that guy putting on his helmet? He doesn't look much older than me!"  
  
"Oh, that's Ector. He's pretty fast, and don't tell anyone this, but I hope he beats Cosha. I never did like the guy."  
  
"Don't worry, I'm not exactly fond of Cosha either. He's almost as creepy as Raykel!"  
  
"Creepy? Hah! You really don't know Raykel's good side."  
  
"Nope," Link agreed. The two men watched Ector repeatedly attack Cosha, but he parried all of his attacks without difficulty. Soon Cosha hit Ector's helmet, just like Link had done to Paro, but imuch/i harder. Ector held his head and fell to one knee, barely aware of what was happening. Cosha kicked him in the face and he flew out of the ring. Ector didn't get up, so the paramedics carried him off.  
  
"Fierce, isn't he?" Link said with a bit of disapproval in his voice.  
  
"Almost to the point of cruelty." Sohran said, also disgusted with how quick Ector had been defeated. "Hey, guess what?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"We're up next."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"We have to fight each other next, see? The referee's calling us. It's time for the semifinals."  
  
"Oh....uh, let's go then. Good luck." Link and Sohran rose and walked to opposite sides of the ring.  
  
"And good luck to you as well. May the best fighter win." The referee signaled it was time to start. Link and Sohran, smiling at each other, met swords at the center of the ring. Many times they attacked each other, but each time one did, the other hit his sword back. The swords rung each time they came in contact with each other, and it was kind of like a song, Link thought. It went on for quite a while, each trying to get his sword past his opponent's guard. At one time Link almost got past Sohran's sword, but Sohran jumped back and thrust at Link, who parried. They seemed to be equal to the crowd, but a few of them noticed that Sohran was trying harder than Link. After maybe half an hour of the swords clashing, Sohran backed away from Link, and they stared at each other. Sohran was breathing pretty hard, but Link seemed to be just fine.  
  
"Pretty persistent, Sohran." Link complimented, "This is fun!"  
  
"You didn't think I'd give up as easily as the other men you fought, did you?" Sohran raised his free hand up to his face, with two fingers up and two down. Some strange greenish energy began to form in a circle around his feet.  
  
"Oh, great." Link said, bracing himself for Sohran's spell. Link remembered that it was supposed to be a tornado attack, but had never seen one and didn't know what to expect. The green energy grew around Sohran, and began spinning. It got bigger and spun faster until it was the size of a small twister. The crowd gasped and braced themselves to prevent getting sucked into the whirlwind, but for Link, who was very close to it, there was no way to prevent being dragged towards the magic tornado. Link stuck his sword into the ground and tried to hold onto it, but his grip wasn't strong enough and he was pulled towards Sohran. When Link was close enough, Sohran grabbed the front of his tunic.  
  
"Hold on!" Sohran warned as he let the tornado spin faster. Link soon discovered that the wind was sharp, and with both the wind and Sohran holding him in place, he could not avoid the slicing currents as they made cuts and slashes all over his body. The wind went faster and the cuts got deeper, and increased in number. Link strained his leg against the wind and brought it up to kick Sohran off of him. The spell disappeared instantly, and both men fell backwards.  
  
"Whoa, cool spell!" Link said, struggling to his feet. He yanked his sword out of the ground and turned to face Sohran, who was already on his feet.  
  
"I need to practice it more." Sohran admitted, "It was really supposed to be stronger than that."  
  
"Wow, maybe I could learn to do it sometime." Link thought out loud.  
  
"Later!" Sohran said, charging at Link. Then the sword ringing resumed. Sohran was still a little tired, and Link was now too, because of his cuts and slashes. Link and Sohran kept attacking each other, and it became clear that neither would give up any time soon. They kept going for maybe twenty minutes, until both were breathing heavily.  
  
"Maybe it's time to finish this," Link decided, "before I waste too much energy. No, I think I already have..." They kept slashing at each other, but all of the sudden Link picked up the pace. He attacked faster, and Sohran couldn't quite block all of his moves. Link kept attacking fast for a couple of minutes, until finally Sohran tripped and fell on his back.   
  
"Looks like you win," he said between deep breaths. "Your more worthy to go on than I, so I surrender." Sohran looked so tired that Link thought he would take a nap on the spot. To his surprise, Sohran found strength to get up and leave the ring.   
  
"The winner is Link!" The referee shouted, and everyone cheered again. There was some especially loud and annoying cheering in front of Link, and he looked at the crowd. He saw Ruto there, screaming in her high-pitched voice.  
  
"Yay! Go Link, go Link!! Exactly what I expect from my future husband!!"  
  
"Eh...." Link wiped the blood and sweat from his forehead and turned away to go and sit where he had before. Well, lay actually. Link was pretty tired and cut up, but knew he would be fighting in the match after the one that was just beginning. He put his hands behind his head to hold it up, and watched Raykel and Cosha step into the ring.  
  
"Let's see what my student can do!" Raykel said happily.  
  
"I won't disappoint you," replied Cosha. Raykel put on his helmet, and at the signal the two rushed at each other. The first thing Raykel did was swing his long sword at Cosha's legs. Cosha jumped, and the sword missed. Cosha took a swing at Raykel's head, but the tall man ducked low enough for it to miss. Raykel lifted his sword and brought the end of the hilt down on Cosha's helmet. Not too hard, but hard enough to stun him for a moment. Raykel then punched Cosha's chest, knocking him down.  
  
"You can do better than that! Get up!" Raykel smiled proudly behind his helmet as Cosha jumped up, barely staying on the ground for a second. The two kept attacking, but Raykel's attacks found their mark far more often than Cosha's. Cosha wasn't doing too bad though, and punched Raykel when he saw a pause between attacks. Raykel stumbled and almost fell, but came back with an attack strong enough to throw Cosha onto his back. Once again he jumped up quickly. Cosha tried a low attack and hit one of Raykel's legs, nearly tripping him.  
  
"Nice try!" Raykel said shoving Cosha away. Raykel kept going for a while, but Link got the feeling that Raykel was letting Cosha get the hits that he got. After a while Raykel got bored of it, and slashed quickly and strongly at Cosha. Cosha brought his sword up to defend, but it flew back and so did Cosha as Raykel's sword hit. Cosha got back up, but Raykel hit him again, sending him out of the designated fighting square. Cosha stayed out.  
  
"My Master wins." He said, before getting to his feet. The crowd cheered when it was announced officially. Raykel took off his helmet and threw it over to a soldier, declaring it was too hot, and went to Cosha.  
  
"Not bad, but I told you that you need much more strength behind your blows. Quickness isn't everything, especially in a fight with armor. Have a seat. We will rest until my next match."  
  
Link laid his head back on the grass as the referee said there would be a fifteen-minute break before the final match. Link rested until the break had come to its end. The match came too quickly.  
  
buSection 5  
  
Blood and Fire/u/b  
  
The Queen Dragon slept poorly in her great, soft, nest. It was composed of many pillows, blankets, mattresses, and even some gold. She was an enormous dragon, being the Queen of Dragons on that continent, and she was almost white, with a tint of orange. She had blood red spikes down her back and the undersides of her great wings were the color of fire. Her beautiful, deep blue eyes rested behind their lids, and her loud breathing could be heard a long ways away. Suddenly, she awakened to the noise of voices.  
  
"bMaster, wait! You forgot your staff!/b"  
  
"I knew that, you pea-brained dragon! I was simply testing how fast you would bring it to me!"  
  
The queen recognized the voices to be Dakos, her subject, and the Dragonlord, her captor. She opened her eyes and raised her head. She would not have them catch her sleeping.  
  
She watched the tiny form of the Dragonlord come through the archway, which was the entrance and exit to her room. He was quite a short man, she thought, and far too young to be controlling a great creature such as herself. She felt a pang of dishonor and hatred as the puny man approached her. He had blonde hair and was wearing a red and black tunic, with designs on it. He was, of course, wearing his headpiece, which looked like a dark metal headband with an orange jewel in it, and red-and-black wings coming off the sides for decoration. He had wing-shaped black spikes coming from something strapped to his back, and from those spikes flowed a red cape. He had black armor on his chest, and at his side was his sheathed sword, a weapon that was infused with darkness. He also had a bow and some evil-looking arrows hung over his shoulder, and black boots and gloves. In his hand was the magical staff he used to control dragons.  
  
"Sahoriel," The Dragonlord began. The Queen of Dragons interrupted him.  
  
"bYou are not worthy to speak my name, TINY MORTAL!/b" She hissed.  
  
"And you had better watch your tongue, you oversized WURM!" The Dragonlord brought up his staff, threatening her. As the Dragonlord challenged Sahoriel, he stared up into her great eyes. iSo large, so blue../i.he felt he would drown in the ocean of her eyes. Be crushed by the boulder-sized irises. Be hypnotized by their power to the point of insanity. He didn't show it, but he was very afraid of the Dragon Queen. He knew that if she wasn't under his power, she could step on him, eat him, shred him, cook him, freeze him, melt him, pull him apart, and a million other things that she pleased. But she was under his power, he reminded himself, and she could not break free.  
  
"Queen of Wurms, you will help me summon a great dragon. You will put it under your spell, for all dragons will obey a Dragon Queen, and I shall put a bracelet on it. You will help me summon a great golden energy-element dragon.  
  
"bYou overstep your limits, Puny One. You have not the power to summon an element dragon, and I will not help you. Your tiny staff will not avail you, for I will not allow another dragon to fly to its death at the hands of a human. No dragon should be forced to fight when it does not want to./b"  
  
"Don't worry about another one of your precious lizards dying, Great Wurm. An element dragon, especially an energy element dragon, is too much for the little Hylians I am sending it after. Besides that, I will go myself to ensure the death of Link. Once I have stolen the princess and forced her to give me the Triforce of Wisdom, I will open a path between the evil realm and this one, for by my new wisdom I will know how, and I will free my Master! Once my Master is free I will have no more use of you, Wurm. At that time I will set you free." The Dragonlord grinned up at Sahoriel.  
  
"bYou swear that you will grant my freedom, and never bother my kind again?/b" Sahoriel asked, thinking that the Dragonlord wouldn't live very long after he set her free.  
  
"I swear it, She dragon." The queen thought a moment.  
  
"bMaster/b," Dakos called from far behind him, "bWould it not be so much easier to just kill Zelda and take the triforce?/b"  
  
"No. Zelda may not have realized the true power of her triforce yet, but she can use some of it, at least. If Zelda gives it to me, I will magically get the knowledge and power to use it as she does. If I kill her, it could take a very long time to learn to use it myself."  
  
"bOh/b" Dakos said, feeling rather dumb. The Dragonlord turned back to Sahoriel, madly smiling.  
  
"So is it a deal or what?" He questioned, knowing the answer.  
  
"bIt is done. When the portal has finished it's re-energizing, which should be very soon, I will summon your element dragon/b."  
  
"You have made the right decision, my powerful pet." Sahoriel hissed at him, bearing her six-foot-long, razor-sharp teeth.  
  
"Hahahaha!" The young Dragonlord laughed insanely and went to watch the portal regain it's powers.  
  
"Will Raykel and Link come to the ring at this time?" the referee shouted. Link got to his feet and walked to one side of the ring, and Raykel proudly marched to the other. Link's heart pace increased in anticipation. He and Raykel drew their swords and stared into one another's eyes. Link's face was expressionless, but Raykel's eyes suddenly filled with hate at the sight of Link. It was so abrupt that it almost made Link jump.  
  
"Begin!" Shouted the referee.  
  
"Haaaahhhh!" both men shouted at once as they ran at each other. Link looked at Raykel's face as the distance between them closed, and found it filled with rage. Link was surprised at how fast the man could get mad. Raykel brought his sword above his head, and Link could tell he was going to bring it down as hard as he could.  
  
"Yikes!" Link raised his shield as the sword came down with tremendous force, and as sword and shield met, there was a loud clang. The force threw Link to the ground, and his Hylian shield fell, in two pieces, off his arm.  
  
"Wow!" Link stared at his broken shield halves for a split second. "Close one!" Link exclaimed as he rolled backwards and jumped to his feet. To his surprise and dismay, Raykel was again raising his sword for a powerful strike. Link wasn't about to let him do that again, and slashed his armored stomach with his sword, knocking the breath from him for a moment, and forcing him to bring his arms down.  
  
"Brat!" Raykel said, attacking fiercely. Link parried again and again, not letting Raykel through. Soon he started an attack of his own. He might have attacked faster, but was still tired and cut up from the last fight, so his attacks were of average speed. Raykel also parried, forcing his sword against Link's, trying to throw him off-balance. It didn't work, and Link kept attacking. He got a few hits on Raykel, and then Raykel retaliated, swinging his long sword at Link in quick swipes, clearly aiming for the head. Link thought the man was insane, for if he let his guard down, he could say goodbye to his head. Raykel didn't get through, and the battle continued for a dozen minutes. In that dozen minutes, Raykel hadn't broken Link's guard much, but Link had broken though his a few times. This wasn't such a great thing, though - because when Link idid/i get through, his strikes didn't do a whole lot to Raykel's thick armor. Both began to tire after fifteen more minutes of swordplay, and Link had put many dents in Raykel's armor. Raykel got tired of being outmatched, and swung his sword in a wide arc at Link. Link parried it, but was unprepared for Raykel's fist smashing into his face.  
  
Link was thrown back and got quickly to hit feet, wiping the blood from his mouth. He slashed at Raykel quickly, and Raykel deflected his attack, but Link quickly brought his sword around again. It struck Raykel's left wrist, cutting through the leather and leaving a slash. Raykel growled in fury and attacked. They kept attacking and defending for another ten minutes or so, and both were breathing heavily. Link decided that if he didn't do something soon, he would tire out for sure. He powered up for a spin attack. Raykel backed out of range, so Link surprised him by not spinning, but jumping out of his crouch and attacking.  
  
"What?!" Raykel exclaimed in surprise, not parrying Link's sudden attack very well. Link attacked with as much strength and speed as possible, and knocked Raykel's sword out of his hand.  
  
"DRAT!" Raykel yelled in rage, knowing Link could cut him if he moved.  
  
"Don't just stand there," Link said with a smile, "Go get your sword."  
  
"Are you kidding? If I turn around you'll drive your sword though me!" Raykel said distrustfully.  
  
"No, I won't. I refuse to battle a warrior without a weapon. As long as you don't pull some quick maneuver and get behind me like your apprentice did to Dans, I wont attack you until you're armed." Link's smile vanished. "We don't have all day." Raykel raised an eyebrow suspiciously at Link, and backed up until his sword was next to his feet, then slowly bent down and picked it up. Dark thoughts plagued his temporarily unstable mind.  
  
iI can't believe this brat is so confident! I know he's letting me get my sword because he wants to dishonor me in front of my men, as if taking my job wasn't bad enough! I've wanted to have the job of being a personal bodyguard for the Royal Family for longer than his lifespan! Now he wants to take my place as the strongest soldier, too? The NERVE! /i  
  
Raykel glowered at Link, and could feel his enmity rising, his rage boiling. Something deep inside of him warned him of getting angry at Link, warned him that he was being unreasonable and evil. He suppressed that something, covering it with hate.  
  
Raykel yelled and rushed at Link, his anger at its peak. He swung his sword at Link as hard as he could. Link was so surprised at the sudden ferocity of the attack that his sword was knocked from his hand, and flew off behind him to his right. Raykel's fist smashed first into Link's stomach, then into Link's face, harder than last time, and Link was hurled to the ground. Link felt blood drip from his mouth as he began to rise, but stopped when he felt the tip of Raykel's sword against his throat.   
  
"Eh...." Link flinched as Raykel brought his blade down slowly, until Link was flat on the ground again. Link felt a warm trickle of blood come from the point on his neck where Raykel's blade pushed against it. The crowd was silent. Link looked up into Raykel's face, and wondered if Raykel would lose his temper and kill him. Link was afraid to swallow, knowing he would cut himself. He barely dared to breathe. His eyes darted over to the ground to the right of him, where his sword lay, almost within reach. His eyes returned to Raykel's face, and he found that Raykel was no longer looking at him. Sure, Raykel's eyes were pointed in Link's direction, but Raykel seemed to be staring right through him, witnessing another dimension. It was pretty creepy. Link took advantage of Raykel being distracted by his own thoughts, and he kicked Raykel's blade off of his neck. Link rolled to the right, grabbing his sword and springing to his feet in one smooth motion. Raykel was so surprised that he didn't move as Link came at him with a jump slash.  
  
"Heeyaahhh!" Link brought the sword down harder than he meant to on Raykel's left shoulder. It made a huge, deep dent, and Raykel was thrown down, dropping his sword.  
  
"Ahhhhh!" Raykel yelled in pain and clutched his wound, where blood was coming from under his shoulder plate. He got to his feet slowly, panting. His features were twisted, and he seemed to be in a great deal of pain. Link realized that he could have killed the man if his blade had been a few inches away from its mark. Link was glad he had good aim, but not glad he had hit Raykel so hard.  
  
"Oh, man...I'm sorry!" Link approached Raykel. "Man, I really didn't mean to -!!!" Link's sentence was cut off as Raykel's right hand shot up, gripping his neck. The iron grip was so intense that Link accidentally dropped his sword as his hands came up to try to pry Raykel's hand off. Link felt like his neck was literally being crushed, and it was impossible to breathe. Raykel drew him in close, so he had little room to struggle. He punched Raykel's face a few times, but the difference in their heights made it difficult to punch very well. Raykel completely ignored the punches, looking down at Link with an insane expression on his face. Link kicked Raykel's legs, but the armor made it impossible to do damage, and Link didn't have the room to bring his boot up to Raykel's face. Raykel continued to strangle him, knowing his helplessness. Again something in Raykel's mind warned him against what he was doing. Again he ignored it. Link grew weak. iNo! I can't let this happen...if I don't break free he may not let me go at all! /iLink continued choking from Raykel's grasp for half a minute, but finally Raykel extended Link at arm's length, examining him as a fisher does his catch, as it suffocates and wriggles on the hook.  
  
"You're pathetic." Raykel said in a low voice, just before Link's boot made contact with his chin.  
  
"Arrgghhh!" Raykel was thrown back by the surprisingly strong kick, and barely avoided falling over. The half-throttled Link dropped to one knee, holding his sore neck and breathing deeply.   
  
"That's it!" Raykel wiped the blood off of his badly bruised chin and picked up his sword. "Right," Raykel whispered so quietly the Link could barely hear him, "I'll kill you." Raykel raised his sword and thrusted downwards towards Link's chest. Link barely dodged in time to avoid being skewered. He brought his left fist up to Raykel's face, punching him square between the eyes, hard. Even without the gauntlets, Link was no weakling. Raykel was thrown back, maybe ten feet, and landed on his back. He was unconscious. Link picked up his sword; he had won the Warrior Contest.  
  
The crowd started cheering, and within seconds, a suspenseful silence was transformed into a deafening roar. Link couldn't hear himself think! When he had quickly sorted out the chaos of his mind, he became aware that people were running towards him. Link looked to the left and saw Saria, Malon, and Zelda running at him, yelling and cheering. In front of him he saw Ruto, quite possibly making more noise than anyone else in the courtyard, running at him as fast as her flipper-feet would allow. Behind him he felt rather than heard several large people lumbering towards him. One of them was yelling, "BROTHER! Let me and my people give you a big Goron Hug to congratulate you!!" Everything was moving at once, and the Sages, Princess, Ranch-girl, and huge Gorons were closing in and would all reach him in a matter of seconds.  
  
It was too much.  
  
"Aaaahhhhhh!" Link screamed, running away through the crowd. He stopped screaming and ran all the way to his room, where he fell, exhausted, onto his bed; and fell asleep almost instantly in the pleasant, soft, silence.  
  
"Whoops...looks like we scared him off!" Zelda yelled over the roar of the crowd, which immediately began dying down once Link had left. "Now the crowd won't get to see Link get his trophy! Dad'll be mad at us..."  
  
"I think Link just needed some rest," Saria said.  
  
"He's going to bleed all over his blankets," Malon stated.  
  
"AWWW! Where'd Brother go?" Darunia asked, disappointed. "Now who are we going to give a Goron Hug to?"  
  
"Not me!" Ruto screeched. "And I should be the only one hugging Link around here!"  
  
"Not until he's done with his nap!" Saria said. No one heard her very well, due to the noise. Even if the cheering had died down, everyone in the crowd was now yapping loudly.  
  
"QUIET!" The King yelled over the noise. "Settle down!" The crowd slowly quieted down, and turned their attention to the King. "Link has probably just gone to sleep! There's no need to get rowdy! We'll wait an hour and then wake him up, so you all can see him get his trophy. Until then, there is a matter to be resolved. I don't know about the rest of you, but it seemed to me that Raykel was trying to kill Link, rather than just defeat him. We will have a vote on this, but not here, it's getting way too crowded in this courtyard. Anyone who wishes to stay and vote on Raykel's case will go outside on the north side of the castle, in North Hyrule. Refreshment will be brought while Raykel is being healed, but anyone who wants to leave immediately will be escorted out by some guards. Those who wish to leave, go to the southern end of the courtyard where five Royal Guards are waiting. The rest of you, go to the northern end." The crowd quietly did as it was told.  
  
Knock. Knock. Knock.  
  
"Uuuuuhhhhhhhh...."  
  
......................  
  
Knock. Knock. KNOCK.  
  
"Zzzzzzzz.....hhmmmmmm."  
  
.....................................................  
  
KNOCK. KNOCK. KNOCK.  
  
"Alright, already! Cut it out!" Link yelled at his door.  
  
"Link, there's a bunch of people waiting for you on Royal Field! It's totally rude to keep them waiting!" Zelda's voice came from behind his door. "They aren't going to leave until they see you, so get up!"  
  
"Coming..." Link drowsily got out of bed and opened the door.  
  
"Link, your a bloody mess! Maybe we should heal you first..." Zelda suggested.  
  
"No, it doesn't hurt much. I can go to Royal Field first." Link said.  
  
"Okay, let's go." Link followed Zelda down the stairs and to the north entrance of the castle. This entrance was really nothing more than a big pair of double doors, connected to the grassy field by a wooden bridge that covered the moat. The doors looked weak compared to the drawbridge at the southern end of the castle, but during times of invasion a huge, thick metal sheet came from an opening above the double doors, and sealed them completely. It would take a lot of strength to break through them. At the moment the doors were open, and Zelda led Link onto the field. Upon their arrival, the people that remained of the crowd started cheering again.  
  
"Oh, come on...can't they cheer any ilouder/i?" Link said sarcastically, holding his head.   
  
"Quiet down, people, quiet." The King said. He approached Link with a weird golden statue mounted on a wooden base. The statue looked like a soldier holding a spear above his head in triumph. "I present you with the warrior trophy, Link." The King held it out to him.  
  
"Uhhhh.... thanks, but what am I supposed to do with that?" Link asked, looking at the object that seemed to be completely useless, except for selling.  
  
"Huh? Well...you keep it in memoration of the event, or sell it, whatever you want." The King replied.  
  
"Ehhh...thanks, I guess." Link said, taking it. The crowd started cheering again, and Link looked around at them, wondering what he was expected to do. Then he spotted Raykel. Two soldiers were holding him, and his hands were tied. iNow why is he being guarded? Why is he out here? /iLink wondered. Cosha was nowhere in sight. When the crowd stopped cheering enough to be heard, Link voiced his confusion.   
  
"What's going on? Why is Raykel all tied up?" Link put his trophy down and looked expectantly at the King.  
  
"A lot of the crowd and I think Raykel tried to kill you during the contest. Most of the crowd agreed, but not all, and he won't confess anything. The law of Hyrule, made before I was born, decrees that a man cannot be executed for attempted murder unless there is a unanimous vote against him, or he confesses. If no conclusion is reached by the jury, or the crowd of witnesses in this case, then the attempted victim must vote, and it will be the final decision."  
  
"iExecuted?/i" Link looked over at Raykel.  
  
"Yes. No banishment, no imprisonment, just execution." The King looked at Link seriously. "So, Link...do you feel that he tried to kill you, rather than defeat you like he was supposed to?"  
  
Link stared into Raykel's eyes.  
  
Flashback...iswinging his long sword at Link in quick swipes, clearly aiming for the head. Link thought the man was insane, for if he let his guard down, he could say goodbye to his head.  
  
Link felt a warm trickle of blood come from the point on his neck where Raykel's blade pushed against it. The crowd was silent. Link looked up into Raykel's face, and wondered if Raykel would lose his temper and kill him.  
  
"That's it!" Raykel wiped the blood off of his bruised chin, and picked up his sword.  
  
"Right." Raykel whispered so quietly Link could barely hear him, "I'll kill you." Raykel raised his sword and thrusted downwards towards Link's chest. /iEnd  
  
Link could see that Raykel was trying to look strong. Raykel was pretending that he didn't care what decision Link made, that it didn't matter to him. Link looked deeper and saw that Raykel was afraid. Afraid of losing his place in life, afraid of death. Link smiled.  
  
"Raykel was very rough during the contest." Link's friendly smile turned serious, as he continued to gaze at Raykel. "But he would not kill me."  
  
Raykel's eyes widened in surprise.  
  
"Very well," The King said, grinning. "I don't want to kill my own man, anyway. Cut his bonds. We'll hold no more grudges against him, since he was only trying hard to win the contest, not kill my daughter's bodyguard." The soldiers holding Raykel released him, and cut the ropes binding him. Raykel simply walked into the castle without saying anything. As he walked by Link, Link thought he saw something glint in those proud, brown eyes. He didn't know if it was gratitude, happiness, bitterness...Link had no idea, but he was hopeful.   
  
"Now then, I know you all have homes to get back to, so let's get back to Hyrule on the southern side of the castle." The crowd started to move towards the double doors, a few stopping to congratulate Link on the way. Some said he should have voted against Raykel, but Link made no comments.   
  
"Brother, how about that HUG, now?" Darunia stopped on his way to the doors to ask Link.  
  
"Well, I'm not really in very good condition for one..." iOh boy...there's no way out of it this time! /iHe thought.  
  
"Nonsense! Your bad condition only makes you more needy of a Goron Hug!" Darunia opened his great arms.  
  
"Wait...!!" They closed on Link and he braced himself to get squashed, but to his surprise, the hug wasn't that bad. Since his arms weren't pinned to his sides like they usually had been in the past, he returned the embrace.  
  
"There, that wasn't so bad!" Darunia said, getting off of him. "Did you think I would CRUSH you or something? I told you I could be gentle, Brother!"  
  
"Guess you were right," Link said. "See you later."  
  
"GOODBYE!" Darunia said, clapping him on the back extremely hard.  
  
"My aching back!" Link was nearly thrown to the ground. "I mean...I'll be iaching/i to get iback/i to the Goron Village to visit you."  
  
"Well, of COURSE you will!" Darunia finally walked away. Link sighed; rubbing his back, but then flinched when he touched a large cut there.   
  
"Sorry about that." Sohran came up to Link, concerned. "You need to clean it and use Arlia. Need help walking to the infirmary?"  
  
"I'll be fine. It's not as bad as it looks"  
  
"If your sure..." He said, walking off. Malon and Zelda walked up beside Link.  
  
"You did great." Malon said.  
  
"Thanks...where's Saria?"  
  
"She had to leave, but she told me to say congratulations to you, so congratulations." Zelda told him. She stared at him admiringly for a few seconds, but he didn't seem to notice.  
  
"Thanks...I can see her later, I guess." The King waited until everyone but Link, Malon, and Zelda was though the doors, and then paused on his way to the castle to talk to them.  
  
"Coming in, Link? Those are some nasty cuts. And by the way, your neck looks a little bruised, too."  
  
"It does? I'll come inside in a moment, just let me enjoy the fresh air for a minute." Link said, sitting down.  
  
"If you insist," the King said, "But I would hurry before those wounds get infected if I were you." iHe's definitely Zelda's father../i.Link said, remembering how Zelda was always fussing about his wounds getting infected.  
  
The King went in and closed the doors behind him. Link laid down and stared up at the sky, noticing that the dark rain clouds had once again covered the sun. Now that he noticed it, the shade from the clouds and the cool breeze felt very nice.  
  
"Link, you should wash those immediately!" Zelda nagged.  
  
"Oh let him rest a moment, for goodness's sake!" Malon said to her.   
  
"Okay." She agreed reluctantly. She hated to see Link hurt.  
  
Link just kept staring at the clouds, and thought they were very beautiful, despite their dark grayness. Link didn't even mind that much, because he liked rain most of the time. He waited a few minutes in silence, and just as he was about to get up, he spotted something. It was a tiny black dot...no, not really a dot...it looked like a far away bat! iMaybe my eyes are deceiving me and it's just one of those birds that usually hang around the lake,/i he thought. The breeze picked up, and it smelled like rain.   
  
"Brrrr! Link, it's cold out here!" Malon shivered in the cold. "Father will be getting worried about me, so I should be going," she said. Link sat up.  
  
"Okay. Want me to walk you back to the ranch?"  
  
"No, I'll be fine...and you're in no condition to be walking anywhere but the infirmary, mister!"  
  
"Hehehe...I know, I know." Link said. Malon walked towards the double-doors and saw Link's trophy, still on the ground.   
  
"Hey, you want me to take this inside?"  
  
"Sure. Just give it to Sohran. You can trust him, and he knows where my room is."  
  
"Sohran? Isn't he the reason your all cut up?"  
  
"It's okay, he's a good guy. And thank you...I'll see you later."  
  
"Bye!" Malon waved as she picked up the trophy. "Heavy, isn't it?" She hefted it and left.  
  
"We should be going in too, Link." Zelda suggested.  
  
"Listen to the wind, Zelda." Link said for no apparent reason. "Doesn't it sound weird? And isn't it weird how fast it picked up? It was just a breeze a few seconds ago!" Link listened to the wind, and thought he heard something wrong with it. A faint sound...   
  
"You're right..." Zelda agreed. "It's almost unnatural...but you know how weird weather can get around here once in a while."  
  
"Ssshhhhhhhh" Link could almost identify the sound, but the wind prevented him from telling where it was coming from yet. Zelda was the first to name the sound.  
  
"Hey, that sounds like the rustling of...wings!" Zelda exclaimed, and they both searched the skies. Link looked for the black thing he saw a few moments ago, but there was no sign of it. It could have disappeared into the low clouds, he thought.  
  
"I hear it but I don't see it! It must be far away!" Link pointed out.  
  
"If it's far than how can we hear it?" Zelda asked.  
  
"I don't..." Just then, Link looked in the direction of the Ethereal Forest, and the thing he saw approaching them was the biggest living creature Link had ever seen. He jumped to his feet.  
  
"It's a DRAGON!" Link shouted over the wind and flapping. He pointed at the enormous golden dragon, which was quickly closing in on them. It had large scales; golden as the King's crown, and stormy gray wings. Its strait horns were as white as it's wickedly sharp teeth, and there was a familiar orange glimmer on it's left wrist. It was so enormous that the flapping of it's wings seemed to fill the air with more sound than the wind, yet it was at least a mile away.  
  
"It's-it's ENORMOUS!" Zelda stammered. "Its wingspan must be as big as the castle!! We have to lead it away from the castle before it gets here and destroys everything!"  
  
"Let's run out and meet it, then!" Link said.  
  
"Are you icrazy/i?! That's an energy-element dragon! With its energy fire, it could melt or blow up entire villages! We're no match for it!"  
  
"We have to do something!" They were both yelling now, to be heard over the gale. An idea, not a very good one, but the only one they had at the moment, struck Link. He called Epona. She came running to him quickly.  
  
"Zelda, ride Epona as deep into the forest as you can! I'll lead it away from you!"  
  
"That's noble, but there's no way - hey! Put me down!" She yelled indignantly.  
  
"No arguing!" Link said, lifting Zelda onto Epona. "The dragon's here! RUN!" Epona took off like a lightning bolt to the right, where the forest was closest, and Link ran away from the castle, toward the dragon. He paid no heed to his cuts and slashes when they re-opened with the strain of sprinting. Suddenly, the dragon was upon him. He drew the Silver Sword, and realized he had no shield. Link was nearly blown over as the dragon flew over him. It swooped around and came back, flying low with its four claws on each paw extended. Each claw was almost as long as Link was tall. He threw himself on the ground, and the sharp claws missed by mere inches.  
  
Link jumped to his feet. Already he knew it was nearly impossible. There was simply no way he could beat this dragon with just his sword...but he had to try.  
  
Zelda and Epona reached the edge of the forest, and Zelda ordered the speeding horse to stop. Reluctantly, Epona halted and Zelda jumped off.  
  
"I know Link wanted me to ride deep in the forest, but he's defenseless out there! I'm going to use a summoning spell to get his bow and arrows. I'd summon more, but I don't think I can handle more than that. When I get the gear, you have to go to him with it, okay?" Zelda looked Epona in the eyes. Somehow the horse understood, and nodded. Zelda summoned the weapons, and slung the quiver over Epona's neck, then Epona took the bow in her teeth.  
  
"Go!" Zelda commanded, and Epona raced off. The quick horse reached Link in a few moments, just as the dragon was about to fly over again.  
  
"Get down!" Link shouted at Epona, and pushed her over, falling with her. Again, the dragon's spear-like claws barely missed. Link and Epona jumped up.  
  
"I don't know how you did it, but good girl!" Link said, equipping the bow and arrows Epona brought. "Wait...weren't you supposed to take Zelda deep into the woods? Maybe not such a good girl!" Epona whinnied in urgency, and Link got on her. He got out his bow and aimed an ice arrow at the dragon's claws as it prepared for another pass.  
  
"bSay goodbye!/b" It roared, lowering and aiming its sharp talons. The dragon roared again, as it felt something bounce off of its hard paw scales and its paws were suddenly encased in ice. "bWhat the heck?!/b" The dragon pulled up, and hovered high in the air, examining it's frozen appendages. A hot, powerful blast of yellow fire shot from it's jaws, and the ice half-melted, half-exploded instantly. "bYou'll have to do better than that! Time for me to fry you, and eat whatever's left!/b"  
  
The dragon dived towards Link and Epona, taking a breath, about to engulf them in energy fire. It didn't know that Link had a light arrow aimed for its eye.   
  
"I hope you can enjoy your meal with one bloody eye!" Link shouted, and let the arrow fly. Just as the dragon was about to flame Link and Epona, the arrow logged itself in the creature's left iris. It screamed in rage and pain, letting out the energy fire in exploding flares, and came tumbling through the sky. Epona quickly ran out of the way, and the enormous dragon barely missed falling on her and Link. However, the shock of the huge body hitting the earth threw horse and rider to the ground. Epona got up immediately, and took hold of Link's tunic with her teeth, pulling him up.  
  
"Thanks..." He said breathlessly. He was so tired and beat up that he was having trouble mounting Epona, so she got down. Soon Link was mounted and Epona stood up, and the dragon rose also.  
  
"bIt's time for a horse-and-Hylian HAMBURGER!/b" He yelled, glaring at them with his one good eye. Epona charged at the dragon, and Link slashed at it with his sword, but discovered that the scales were too thick to be cut. He noticed that there was an unarmored spot between the dragon's neck scales and it's underside scales, and aimed for it, but the dragon reared back it's huge head, and bit at its attackers like a snake. He didn't bite them, but his snout hit, knocking them both over. Immediately the creature grabbed Epona in one great paw. "bSay good-bye to horsey/b!!!" It yelled mockingly.  
  
"NO!" Link shouted as the dragon hurled Epona at the Ethereal Forest to the north. Link was amazed at how far the creature could throw. Epona, neighing in terror, flew all the way to the forest, and disappeared behind the trees! "Blasted dragon! You'll pay for thaaaaat!!" Link yelled, losing his temper. He didn't fight very well when he lost his temper. Even though he was completely exhausted, he jumped to his feet. He tried to cut the dragon with his sword again, but he didn't use magic and it just glanced off of the thick scales.  
  
"bFool!/b" The dragon slammed its paw down on Link, pinning him to the ground. "Forget the hamburger, I'll have a pancake! Hahahaha!" A cold rain began trickling from the heavens, and quickly turned into a heavy downpour, just as Link thought things couldn't get any worse. The dragon slowly applied pressure to Link's body, which was completely covered by the paw, except for his head and left arm. Link grimaced in pain, and the pain of the claw was almost as bad as the pain of losing Epona. He reached for his sword, just an inch away from his grasp!   
  
"bOh no you don't/b!" The dragon said, grinning. Gleefully, it put more pressure on Link. He screamed in agony, feeling a couple ribs breaking under the dragon's weight. He couldn't breathe, and knew if the dragon put any more weight on him, he would be crushed. He could almost reach his sword! He knew that even if the sword didn't pierce the dragon, the light magic would burn it; but there was no way he could reach it if the dragon didn't let up.   
  
Suddenly, the dragon started roaring and the paw stopped crushing. Link looked to his right and saw Zelda, of all people, half a mile away, attacking it with a light spell! Most of the pressure was off of him, so Link grabbed the Silver Sword. He clashed it against the dragon's hand, calling up its magical light powers. The dragon growled as it's paw burned, and he took it off of Link.  
  
"bI don't have time for this/b!" The dragon jumped into the air, and flew after Zelda, who had run out of light magic. She screamed and ran, but the dragon was closing in.  
  
"Get back here, dragon!" Link yelled hoarsely, barely able to speak. Link got up, holding his side and breathing hard. Rain mixed with blood, and immediately there were red streaks down Link's entire body. Hopelessly, he drew his bow, but knew the dragon was almost out of range. Suddenly he heard a sound to his left, and nearly fell over with surprise when he saw Epona galloping towards him! He saw some lily pads stuck in her mane, and realized she must have landed in a lake.  
  
"You are sooo lucky!" Link said with difficulty, painfully throwing his arms around her neck in a quick hug of gratitude. "Let's save Zelda!" Epona got down and Link found the strength to get on her, and they ran after the dragon. By now the dragon had reached Zelda.  
  
"Aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh! Heeeelp!" She screamed as the dragon scooped her up. It quickly flew left towards the part of the forest it had come from, but the fatigued Epona somehow pursued fast enough to get Link within range of shooting the beast.   
  
"Take me lower, Dakos! Quick!" The Dragonlord and Dakos hovered high above the battlefield, hidden behind a thin cloud, from which they were watching the fight. Although Dakos had used much of his magic powers to enhance the storm, it hadn't exhausted him physically, so he quickly obeyed his master's order. "That little punk won't know what hit him!" The Dragonlord said, taking out his bow.  
  
"This'll stop it!" Link said in his sore voice, notching an ice arrow and aiming for the dragon's wing. The dragon was still too far away for Link's liking, but if anyone could make the shot with broken ribs, cuts and bruises everywhere, and exhaustion creeping over, it was Link. Nothing could stop him from saving his princess. But he would never know if he would have made the shot. Just as he was about to let the ice arrow go, he heard an arrow already whizzing through the air. "Huh?" Link thought he was hearing things, but then a large, sharp, black arrow buried its ugly head in his left shoulder.  
  
"Eeeaaauughh!" Link screamed, dropping his bow. Immediately he knew that this was no ordinary arrow. His strength failed him, and he fell off of his exhausted horse. Epona slowed and stopped, then fell over, too tired to do anything else. Link could feel dark energy radiating through his entire body. It was excruciating. "Aaaahhhh!" Link yelled, as he tried to pull the arrow out, but found he had no strength left to do it. He felt his body being infected with dark power from the arrowhead...in a minute or two, he knew it would kill him if the arrowhead wasn't removed. Link heard someone approaching him.  
  
Raykel walked over the slippery wet grass towards the green and red form on the ground, which he assumed was Link. He saw Link's bow and Epona also lying on the ground, and made a mental note to send some soldiers to get them when he got back to the castle.   
  
By the time the energy-element dragon had grabbed Zelda, the King had grown worried about his daughter and Link, and sent Raykel and a few Royal Guards to go get them. The soldiers that had been with Raykel ran in fear when they had seen the golden dragon, but Raykel, seeing that the malicious beast had got what it came for and was not coming back, had begun crossing the field towards Link.  
  
When Raykel reached him, he watched in surprise as Link struggled to pull an arrow from his shoulder.  
  
"Please, Raykel..." Link asked in a voice creased with pain, "pull it out!"  
  
"What have you done? Some bodyguard! You were supposed to be protecting the princess!!" Raykel glared down at Link. "I should pull it out, it will take half of your shoulder with it!"  
  
"Out...." Link said weakly. Raykel looked at him for a few seconds, then bent down, putting a hand on the arrow.  
  
"This is going to hurt a lot.... Here it comes..." Somehow Link kept himself from crying out when Raykel ripped the arrow out. Perhaps he was just too tired to yell. His breath came in short, painful gasps, and he laid back in fatigue, trying to smile at Raykel. Suddenly he coughed, and blackish-red blood came spilling from his lips.   
  
"My gosh...is that your blood? What's happened to you...?" Raykel stared at the liquid without expression. Link closed his eyes tiredly, and in doing so, missed the look of compassion that abruptly crossed Raykel's face. Raykel leaned down and took Link in his arms, and carried him back to the castle.  
  
hello! If you liked this, please review! Even if you didn't like it review. I won't cry over constructive criticism. I have some art for this story I drew, if you want it click this link: http: or just paste it in your bowser adress. Please e-mail me at talonofdayyahoo.com to comment on the art or include it in your review if you want. Thanks for reading! -Talonclawfange 


	4. Hunt for the Dragonlord 1,2,3

ubHunt for the Dragonlord/b/u  
  
By: Sonnet A.K.A. Talonclawfange  
  
( E-mail me at Talonofday@yahoo.com, but not if you're going to give me sick advertisements! I DONT WANT THEM!! I'M ONLY 16! Just feedback, please.)  
  
  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Hyrule, Link, Epona, Zelda, or anything else from Shigeru Miamoto and Nintendo's genius video game: Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. I wrote this story in dedication to them, since it's from the best video game of all time, created by them. The only things I own are North Hyrule, the Dragonlord, Raykel, Calwots and all other things not in the original video game (so don't use em' without asking me and putting that I thought them up). I also wrote this because I like reading, drawing, and, recently, writing fantasy (all talents are given to me by God, so all credit goes to him as well). I think Link is really cool - Good job, Miyamoto!   
  
Note: In section 8: Final Fight of the Sadistic Dragonlord, the Beginning of Chain, sadistic means nothing more or less than he enjoys inflicting pain on others. A defenition in a dictionary I saw suggested something more, but I'm not using the word that way, got it?  
  
Another Note: This story takes place after my first two: The Problem of the Swamp Fairies, and Duels and Dragons, so you probably want to read them first or you'll be lost. By the way, this story is about 49 pages long (they just keep getting longer, don't they?) and is somewhere between PG and PG-13, there's no sexual themes or foul language, but there's violence and blood. Enjoy!  
  
buSection 1  
  
Black Scar/u/b  
  
By the time he got to the castle, Raykel's armor was so covered in blood and rain that he thought it would rust, despite its resistance to liquids. The trip from where Link had fallen to the castle was a somewhat short walk, but Link was bleeding so badly that Raykel's armor had more blood than rain on it by the time he got there. It was unnatural, Raykel thought. He looked down at Link's face, and it looked peaceful with his unconsciousness, yet he must be perilously close to death. As he opened the doors of the castle, the guards standing watch stared at him, and as he passed, he ordered them to go get Epona and Link's bow. Raykel carried Link to the infirmary and laid him on a table.  
  
"Oh, my.....!" A gasp of shock escaped the nurse's lips as she saw Link's condition.  
  
"Get the King," Raykel told her, "I'll get the doctor, for all the good it will do...Link is dying." The nurse somehow managed to tear her eyes away from the red and black blood coming from Link's shoulder, and went to get the King. The doctor ran into the room just as Raykel was about to go get him. His jaw literally dropped.   
  
"What on earth happened?!" The doctor yelled.  
  
"Don't just stand there, ido/i something!" Raykel said impatiently.  
  
"But I can't do anything for ithat!/i What iis/i that?" The doctor, overcome with horror, pointed at Link's shoulder. Raykel opened his mouth to say something nasty, but at that moment, the King came in.  
  
"Link! What the heck happened to him?! Where is my daughter!?!"  
  
Link started stirring, awakened by the King's yelling. His eyes slowly opened and he noticed that it was strangely hard to breathe, and something bubbled in his throat as he struggled to draw breath. At first he felt no pain, remembered nothing, but then the pain and memories all rushed back to him at once.  
  
"Aaahhh! No...Zelda!"  
  
"Calm down, Link!" the doctor said, "All that yelling won't help!" Raykel glared at the useless doctor, and calmly walked over to Link.  
  
"Link, listen. I don't think you're going to last much longer with how fast you're bleeding. That arrow pierced you very deeply. Your blood is blackish, and even thei doctor/i can't do anything."   
  
"I have to save Zelda...where's Epona...what did you say...?" Link had calmed down, and looked like he was about to lose consciousness again by the time he had finished talking.  
  
"What's all this about?" A loud voice demanded, and Darunia entered the room. "Why is my sworn brother, the King, in here? And what happened to my other sworn brother, Link?!" Spotting Link on the table, Darunia ran over to him, pushing aside Raykel and the doctor.  
  
"Watch it, you rock-skull!" The doctor growled, "Do you think yelling and pushing will help your dying brother?!"   
  
"iDying/i? Not if I can help it!! I'll take him to the Great Fairy, she can heal him, and watch who you're calling a rock-skull!" Darunia said, taking a step towards the man, who cringed in fear, backing away.  
  
"Gentlemen, please! I have heard of a Fairy on Death Mountain," The King said, "but I don't think Link will live long enough to get there." He looked at Darunia solemnly.  
  
"Not the Fairy on Death Mountain," Darunia explained, "the Fairy right next to your castle!"  
  
"What? There's a fairy next to my castle? Are you sure your information is corr-"  
  
"Yes, Brother!" The Goron interrupted. "Get Brother, eh...Link, that is...on a stretcher and follow me!" The nurse and the doctor put the half-awake Link on a stretcher. Link started muttering about Zelda and the dragon, and the King spoke to him softly during the short trip to the Great Fairy's cave. When they were inside, Darunia spoke loudly in front of the Great Fairy's pool.  
  
"I am Darunia, friend of the Great Fairy on Death Mountain and the Royal Family. Come forth and heal the Hero of Time!" Laughing blissfully and spinning gracefully, the Great Fairy emerged from her pool. She smiled and spoke in a sweet voice.  
  
"Darunia and Link are here to visit me...?" Her smile vanished as she saw Link, his panting form covered in blood infected by dark magic. The King, the doctor, the nurse, and Raykel all stared up at her in amazement, having never seen a Great Fairy, and she leaned down to look at Link.  
  
"It will take a great deal of power to heal these wounds..." she said, noticing that aside from the darkened shoulder, Link had many cuts and slashes all over him, not to mention some broken ribs. His breathing was shallow, and the Great Fairy felt almost sick as she saw all the dark liquid covering him. Link choked on his blood and turned his head to spit it out, coughing. "Never mind how much power it will take, we all owe a great deal to this young man, so I will fix him up as well as I can!" She opened her arms and leaned forward, and some blue magic left her hands, spiraling down to the injured Link. It enveloped him and started shimmering as it ran up and down his body.   
  
The men and the nurse watched as Link's wounds started to close up, until all was healed completely except the shoulder. The black arrow hole was mostly closed up, but dark liquid continued to pour from it. The blue magic vanished and the Fairy straightened herself. "That is the best I can do," she said, "I cannot heal dark wounds very well. If you take Link to the Temple of Time and have him lay his hands on the Master Sword, its pure power will get rid of the darkness. No, the weak magic of the Silver Sword won't work, have him get the Master Sword! He must take it with him if he is to defeat the Dragonlord." With that, the Great Fairy descended gracefully into her pool, her usual laughing absent.  
  
Link, still breathing heavily, tried to get up, but lost his balance and fell forward. Darunia caught him and supported him as the small group walked to the Temple of Time. Link drew the Master Sword from the Pedestal of Time, and some white light came from the blade, running along his arm and going into his shoulder. Instantly, the pain from the dark magic was gone and the dark blood ceased to flow from the formerly deadly wound. Link looked where the hole had been, and saw a black scar in place of it; which, though ugly looking, was not painful at all at the moment.   
  
"Thanks, guys..." Link said, turning to the people who had saved him. "and girl." he added, seeing the nurse.  
  
"You need to watch it, Link." Raykel said quietly. "I almost thought we would lose you...and wouldn't that be a shame?" he grinned.  
  
"Uhhh..." Link wasn't sure what to say.  
  
"Enough of this idle talk, Link needs to be washed up now." The King looked him over, displeased with how many holes his clothes had, and the half-dry blood still coating much of him. "My boy, you're a mess!" Link looked down and examined himself.  
  
"Yeah, I guess I am!" Link said dumbly, not thinking of anything else to say. With that, everyone went back to the castle, except Darunia. He said good-bye to Link and left for Death Mountain. After Link was washed and put on some new clothes, the King, Link, Cosha, and Raykel all met in the King's quarters.  
  
"Well, the reason I've summoned you three," the King began, "is because something must be done about my daughter. Raykel has told me she was taken by a dragon."  
  
"I'll go save her!" Link said immediately.  
  
"I knew you would say that," The King revealed, "in fact, I was going to order you to go save her if you didn't say that, but like I told you, I knew you would. Don't worry though, you won't be alone this time."  
  
"Huh?" Link didn't understand, because pretty much all the saving he had done in the past he had done by himself.  
  
"I know you are probably used to doing everything alone because no one is courageous enough to help you, but now that Raykel is here, I'm sure he will be more than happy to go with you. No questions!"  
  
"I know he's brave enough, but will he iwant/i to go with me?" Link looked at Raykel and decided he really didn't want to be alone with him...but then Raykeli had/i saved him, hadn't he?  
  
"You're Majesty, I think Sohran should go with him..." Raykel started to say.  
  
"Nonsense! You are going because you're the best warrior. Sohran has to command the Royal Guard while you're gone. Just as an extra precaution, one more soldier is going to go as well. Sohran and Cosha were both high-ranking competitors in the Warrior Contest but Sohran must stay here, so Cosha is going. No questions!" Raykel and Cosha looked at each other, smiling slightly.  
  
"Yes, Your Majesty..." Link said, feeling like he was going to go on a walk with a couple of wolfoses.  
  
"Whatever you say, sire." Raykel said with a bow.   
  
"Good." The King said with satisfaction. "I'm sure you three will do a wonderful job. You ido/i know where to go, don't you?"  
  
"All the dragons that have attacked have come from the north...probably from somewhere in the Ethereal Forest." Link told him.  
  
"Well then, you three should leave immediately, so you can get a few hours' worth of land behind you before the sun sets. It is unknown how long it will take to get through the forest, or to the middle, wherever you're going, so stop by the kitchen to get provisions before you leave. If those run out, I trust you can hunt for yourselves?" Raykel, Cosha, and Link all nodded. "Good then. Be on your way, and good luck!"   
  
After getting camping gear and provisions (and Link equipped his items), the three unlikely companions left on horseback for the Ethereal Forest. Raykel was wearing some blue clothes and some armor of his that wasn't as shiny as his Royal Guard armor, but was more comfortable. He didn't bother to bring a bracer, helmet, or shield; just his sword, his bow, and a dagger. Cosha had similar gear, except his sword was shorter than Raykel's and he carried two daggers. Cosha was about twenty-six, and had short, very dark brown hair, with green eyes. He also wore some light armor, and the metal from it and Raykel's armor clanked with the bouncing of their mounts as they galloped towards the Ethereal Forest. Link was not riding Epona, because she was still resting, and because she would probably out-distance the other horses and their riders in a heartbeat. As much as Link felt uncomfortable with Raykel and Cosha, he didn't want to leave them behind and make the King angry, so all three of them rode white horses from the castle's stables.  
  
As the men crossed Royal Field, Link thought about his captured friend, Zelda. She had been gone for under two hours, but he missed her already. The loneliness was especially distressing because he didn't know when the next time he saw her would be, or if he would even see her at all. Link thought about the time he had spoken to his friend about loneliness...  
  
~Flashback~ i"Hey, if the soldiers don't find Impa in Hyrule, I'll look for her while I'm exploring North Hyrule, okay?" Link tried to console his friend. "If she's there, I'm sure she'll show herself to me if I come by her."   
  
"Thanks, Link...I think about her every time I turn into Sheik, every time I think of the contest, every time I do anything she used to help me with... I really miss her. I'm glad I have you to keep me company." Zelda smiled over at Link.  
  
"Ah, don't go corny on me again..." Zelda's reply was laughing.  
  
"Hey, I'm not joking! You may be a 'loner warrior' kind of guy, but if I have no one to talk to, I get very bored."  
  
"Loner, huh? Just because I'm alone a lot doesn't mean I enjoy it. I get lonely sometimes too, y'know?/i" ~End~  
  
Link's thoughts returned to the present as he saw the trees of the Ethereal Forest approaching. It didn't take much longer to reach the forest, and when the Hylians got there they slowed their horses to a walk, because of the dense trees.   
  
Link looked around, admiring the beauty of the huge trees. iThey must be ancient, /ihe thought, iI can't even see the tops of a few of them.../i The light from the sun fell thought the tree tops and made and intricate pattern of shadows on the ground, which was littered with dead leaves and pine needles. Once every couple dozen feet there were patches of grass, growing under breaks in the forest's canopy where they could absorb the sun's rays. In the distance Link spotted some light glinting off of the shining wings of two yellow and green butterflies. The songs of birds and chirping of insects filled the air, and the pleasantness of the forest almost made Link forget the bad situation he was in. He lost himself in the forest until sunset. The awareness of his situation and his companions' probable intentions returned, and all of the chirping and songs came to an end for the night. Link could see that they were passing the Jagged Beamos rock formation on the left side, which meant they would soon pass the limit that the soldiers from the castle had explored when North Hyrule had first been discovered. The three men rode on in uncomfortable silence until it became so dark the horses could barely make out their footing. They had not spoken since the beginning of their journey, and Link and Raykel both started to speak at once, then went silent and looked at each other.  
  
"Eh, sorry...what were you about to say?" Link asked politely.  
  
"We should set up camp now." Raykel said.  
  
"Yeah, I think so too." Link agreed. Cosha nodded, and the three of them halted to tie the horses' reins to a nearby tree branch and set up camp. After a fire was made, they each individually cooked the food they had brought from the castle, and the silence returned as they ate. Link sat down in front of the fire, and Cosha sat a little distance away from him, Raykel following. The terrible and unending silence began to bother Link, and he decided maybe he could lighten the mood with some conversation.  
  
"So, Raykel...did you have fun in the Warrior Contest today?" He looked at Raykel hopefully. The man sat with a brooding air about him, and it seemed for a moment like he was not going to answer, but then he spoke.  
  
"Sure." He said.  
  
"Me too." Link said quickly. Silence once again crept over the small camp. How annoying, Link thought. He never thought he could be so uncomfortable with such lack of talking, because silence was usually a regular companion of his. He wondered if it would be this way the entire trip, but Cosha said something.  
  
"Of course you did, Link. You won the stupid contest." He said flatly.  
  
"Cosha, mind your manners..." Raykel reprimanded quietly.  
  
"Well he doesn't have to rub it in our faces!" Cosha growled.  
  
"Well, excuuuuuuse me." Link said irritably. "I wasn't trying to rub it in your face, I was just trying to talk, c'mon! You two don't have to be so quiet...do you think we're going to wake the dead or something?"  
  
"Maybe." Cosha said, grinning mischeviously. "You afraid of the dead, Link?"  
  
"I fight them all the time, really." he said. He was not very pleased that they were arguing, but at least it was better than the hate-filled silence.  
  
"Well it's a good thing you are familiar with them, because soon you may be joi-"  
  
"Shut UP, Cosha!" Raykel growled. Cosha looked at his teacher in surprise.  
  
"Uh, y-yes, Master." He said. The three men were silent once again. Link unwilling to speak, fearing that he would start another argument, and Cosha because he didn't want to anger his Master. Link simply stared into the fire, until all of them were done eating.  
  
"We should set up a watch..." Link suggested quietly after a while. In the distance, a wolfos howled.  
  
"Scared of the dark..?" Cosha started to say, but was quickly silenced by a dark glance from Raykel.  
  
"Fine then," Raykel said, "I will go first, then you, then Cosha, if that's alright with you." He looked at Link for an answer, and Link nodded, giving a small smile which was not returned. The fire was extinguished, and Link and Cosha went to sleep. It took Link a long time to fall asleep because his black-scarred left shoulder ached with a dull throbbing.i Who shot me with that arrow? /iLink wondered, his mind tiredly trying to reason it out.i It had to have been the Dragonlord...so, he finally rears his ugly head. Well, more like hides behind a cloud and shoots his enemy's back./i..He finally drifted into darkness and slept for a few hours. He was having a rather unpleasant dream, when he felt something cold and hard on his face...  
  
He woke instantly, and heard something move quickly to the side of him. He looked over and saw Raykel.   
  
".........." Raykel said nothing and Link looked at him expectantly. "Hm...it's your turn." He said finally.  
  
"Oh...okay." Link said, rising from his sleepingbag-like temporary bed. He went and sat on a rock, and watched Raykel go to sleep. He then looked out into the forest. It was very quiet, except for the occasional chirping of a faraway insect or the soft nicker of a horse. This time Link felt comfortable in the peaceful silence, and enjoyed the soft darkness of the night for a few hours. Nothing happened during his watch, and when it was over, he moved to wake up Cosha. He walked over to Cosha's sleeping form, and lightly tapped him on the shoulder. He woke abruptly and looked up at Link, frowning unpleasantly.   
  
"Oh, it's iyou./i My turn already?" He asked.  
  
"Sshhh...yes." Link whispered, ignoring the other's unkind attitude. Cosha got up and Link tried to go to sleep. He didn't feel quite safe with Cosha awake...he hadn't exactly been comfortable with Raykel awake either, but at least he knew that Raykel had the decency to not attack a man while he sleeps, didn't he..? Hopefully, Cosha would also. Link knew that Cosha might still be mad at him from the small argument earlier...but he eventually fell asleep anyway.   
  
***  
  
The energy-element dragon landed heavily on the black stone, and put down his small captive, who had long since tired out from struggling. Dakos flew in and landed next to the huge golden dragon, crounching so his master could dismount. The Dragonlord, wearing an ugly, condescending grin, walked over to the exhausted Zelda. He griped her arm and yanked her to her feet roughly.  
  
"Okay, here's the deal, girly. You give me the Triforce of Wisdom, and you can go free." Zelda jerked her arm out of his grasp and backed away.  
  
"You do not really think that I will give it to you, do you? You are evil." Zelda stared into the Dragonlord's young eyes defiantly.   
  
"Haha! I didn't think you would give it up if I asked nicely. How's this: Give it up or I'll ikill /iyou?!" He yelled, expecting a submissive answer.  
  
"iNo way./i" Zelda said firmly, and transformed into Sheik. She pulled out some darts, throwing them at the Dragonlord. He looked surprised that she transformed into a Sheikah, but didn't pay it any mind.  
  
"Why you little...!" The Dragonlord dodged, and Sheik ran at him. She jumped into the air, kicking him square in the face with her right heel. He was thrown back, but the energy-element dragon caught him in a great paw before he fell, growling at Shiek. One of the wing-shaped black spikes on the Dragonlord's back snapped from the impact, and his cape (which was attatched to the spikes) drooped. The dragon put the Dragonlord down, and quickly snatched the girl who had dared attack its master in one great paw.  
  
"bOrders, Master?/b" It asked. The Dragonlord, brushing himself off and mad that his spike had broken, answered:   
  
"Make her scream." The energey-element dragon started squeezing her. She fought and kicked, futily trying to break loose of the impossibly strong grip. The dragon squeezed harder, and Sheik yelled in pain.  
  
"That's enough. We don't want to kill her yet." The Dragonlord said, and the dragon put Sheik down reluctantly. She collapsed, breathing deeply.  
  
"That's what you get when you mess with me, you brat!" The Dragonlord yelled, kicking her side. "Give me the triforce!"  
  
"No!" Sheik yelled back. The Dragonlord's young face got red and he turned around, trying to cool his temper.  
  
"Fine then..." He said in a voice low with anger and hate. "Zelda, you were doomed before I ever sent a dragon after you, since the first day I had a spy in your castle! Ever since then, you've been doomed to give up the triforce."  
  
"A spy? How dare you! Whoever that spy was is in big trouble...and there's no way I'll ever give you the triforce!" She yelled defiantly. She turned back into Zelda so she could use her magic more easily, and raised her hand to cast a spell, thenbelatedly remembered she was out of magic. The Dragonlord shook with rage at this attempted attack.  
  
"We'll see if you change your mind after a few days in my dungeon!" He shouted, reaching for her.  
  
buSection 2  
  
From Three to Two/u/b  
  
Link and Raykel awoke the next morning to join Cosha in breakfast. It was a beautiful morning, filled with birds singing and light beaming between the branches of the trees, but somehow Cosha and Raykel still seemed grouchy. After the short meal was over, the three companions continued their trek into the forest. A few hours after they set off, Raykel and Cosha fell behind, and began to converse in low tomes with one another. Link tried to listen, but crunching of dead leaves under their horse's hooves and the noises of the forest animals drowned out their low voices. Link decided that he probably didn't want to hear what they were saying anyway, but had a bad feeling...  
  
A while later, Link spotted a bit of forest which looked like it had been disturbed by a large animal's passing. He called a halt, and dismounted to examine a bush, which seemed to be messed up on one side. Raykel and Cosha watched silently as Link checked the area. Raykel and Cosha looked at each other, and Raykel nodded. Cosha handed something to Raykel and Raykel raised an arm...  
  
"Hm? How strange...what's this?" Link saw odd tracks on the ground. Something shiny came whizzing through the air towards the back of Link's head. As Link leaned down to examine the tracks, the object flew past his head, inches from striking him, and smacked into a tree, bouncing off into some long grass, away from Link. He stood up instantly, oblivious to the plot being hatched against him, and looked back at Raykel and Cosha. "Hey, did you two hear something just now?" They shook their heads, and each had a strange, unpleasant look on his face. Thinking that it was a look of impatience, Link quickly explained what he had found.  
  
"A dragon didn't pass here, but I did find some wolfos tracks." Raykel and Cosha glared at him irritably. "Not normal ones...these ones are really big, come and look!" Raykel and Cosha dismounted and went to look at the tracks. Raykel's eyes widened and Cosha gasped.   
  
"They're ihuge/i!" Cosha said.  
  
"They must be from a wolfos at least five times the size of a normal one..." Raykel commented.  
  
"The strange thing is that there are just some tracks on this earth over here...then they disappear, not coming from anywhere and not going anywhere! We will have to keep our eyes open, hm?" Link said, looking at Raykel.  
  
"We will indeed..." Raykel said, giving Link a creepy look.  
  
"Eh...um, lets go, shall we...?" Link got on his horse and the others followed his example. iI hope we find Zelda soon...I hope she's okay.../iLink kept thinking. Link knew that it was more beneficial to get a triforce by it's holder's will, so Zelda wouldn't be hurt until the Dragonlord got impatient of asking her to give it up. But Link was certain she would not give her triforce up to an evil man, so after a few days the Dragonlord would probably get angry and torture her or something. Link shuddered in spite of himself, he couldn't let that happen! He had to reach Zelda before time ran out!  
  
The horses and their riders kept going deeper into the forest, and it seemed to Link like it was getting quieter and shadier. The Ethereal Forest had at first struck Link as an old, beautiful place, but now it seemed almost foreboding...the bird's songs had nearly ceased, and the insects were quieting down as well. The interlocking branches of the forest canopy overhead darkehed the path, and made it difficutlt to dicern what time of day it was. A few hours passed, and it became so dark that the men could barely see eachother. Link faintly heard the sound of a peaceful waterfal somewhere nearby.  
  
"Do you guys hear that?" Link asked.  
  
"Yes, a waterfall, so what?" Cosha said, glancing at him irritably.  
  
"I think Link is suggesting that we continue to the waterfall and make camp there." Raykel said boredly.  
  
"Exactly. How did you know?" Link looked at Raykel, who pretended he hadn't heard. After a few more moments of riding, the forced companions reached the water source.  
  
It was a small, pretty lake with a short waterfall feeding it. By now the moon had risen, and through the impossibly thick, roof-like canopy, some sparkling moonlight found it's way to the shimmering surface of the water, making it look very peaceful and beautiful. The horses were tied to a nearby tree, and Link went to see how pure the water was. He kneeled by the lake's edge and splashed some of the cool water on his face, then tasted it. It was very refreshing. He stood up to go help set up camp, but nearly bumped into Cosha, who was standing directly behind him, as he turned around. He looked up into Cosha's face (Cosha was about six inches taller than Link), and wondered why he was standing so close...  
  
"Um, the water is clean." Link said, thinking maybe that was what Cosha wanted to know. Apparently it wasn't; because Cosha still stood in front of him, unmoving. Link thought maybe he was in Cosha's way and Cosha was standing there to be arrogant or something, so he started to move, but didn't get very far.   
  
With an alarmingly swift maneuver, the same one he used in the Warrior Contest, Cosha put himself behind Link, and stuck his short, three and a half inch knife up to the hilt in Link's side.  
  
"Ahhh!...Hey, you can't be serious!" Link was about to remove the blade and fight, but his arms were grabbed and held behind him by Cosha's left arm, and his attacker's other arm came up around his neck. "We have to save Zelda! This isn't funny-" His last sentence was cut off in a strangled gasp as Cosha pulled back on his throat.  
  
"Too bad you have to breathe to use those Golden Gauntlets of yours..." Cosha said, smiling darkly and tightening his hold. Link wondered how Cosha could possibly know that about the gauntlets, and remembered too late that he was wearing them. Link struggled violently, but Cosha's restraining arms were incredibly strong, and Link began to feel drowsy from the hold on his neck. He looked in front of him and saw Raykel approaching, his dagger drawn. iThey aren't really going to do this, are they?! How could anyone..? /iLink couldn't comprehend this evil behavior and stared helplessly into the eyes of Raykel. He couldn't move, or even talk! He hated being so ihelpless/i!  
  
"It's time, Master, to put an end to this little nuisance of a boy." Cosha said, holding Link still. Raykel raised the dagger and pressed it against the top of Link's neck (between Link's chin and Cosha's arm). Link flinched, but still could not move out of the way or defend himself.  
  
"Good-bye, Link." Raykel said quietly. He put pressure on the dagger slowly and it cut slowly, until blood began to flow from the cut, but just as the knife was about to reach an artery, it stopped. Raykel looked into Link's pained eyes and found in them the hurt of betrayal. iWhat...what am I doing? /iHe asked himself suddenly. iWhat has Link done to deserve this? He saved us all from Ganondorf, and then spared my life when he could have had me executed, and now I'm betraying...no, ikilling/i him? /iSomething dark rose inside Raykel, urging him to shove the dagger through Link's neck, but something else spoke to him as well, telling him what he was doing was not what he would normally do, and he was being evil. iI'm not an evil man, am I? I was always determined to aim high and have integrity and mercy.../i  
  
"Master?" Cosha looked at him expectantly, but Raykel would not be distracted from his thoughts. iLink...He's just a boy, yet he has helped so many people, and I'm sure he didn't mean to hurt me when he was given my job...he was just concerned for Zelda's safety. Why have I gotten so bitter against him, to the point of losing my values? I have been a fool! This is NOT who I am! WHAT AM I DOING? /iAn alarmed look came over Raykel's face, and he removed the blade from Link's neck. Cosha was so surprised he momentarily relaxed his stranglehold; and Link drew one breath, which was all he needed to use the gauntlets. He broke Cosha's hold on his arms instantly, elbowed him in the stomach, and turned around, giving him a nice, big shove. The force of it threw Cosha twenty feet, and he landed with a splash in the middle of the lake. Cosha emerged seconds later, coughing and sputtering. Link pulled the knife out of his side and put a hand over the wound it left open, then looked up at Raykel. Raykel said nothing, staring at Cosha, who was swimming towards them. Link had supposed that he hit Cosha hard enough and threw him far enough that he wouldn't bother him again, but he was wrong.  
  
"I get it, Master!" Cosha yelled insanely, "You don't want to kill him like we planned. You want me to finish the job as part of my training!" Cosha had made his way over to the water's edge where Link was, and grabbed him from behind, hurling him into the lake behind him. Link hadn't expected this, plus he was wounded, so he couldn't act fast enough to prevent it. As Link fell into the water, Cosha turned towards the ripples left by his splash, determined to go drown him, but Raykel grabbed the back of Cosha's clothes and threw him onto the ground behind himself, so he was between the lake and his student.   
  
"What...?" Cosha stared at Raykel, not willing to believe what was happening.  
  
"Enough is enough, Cosha." Raykel went to the lake and pulled Link to shore.   
  
"No! Link must DIE!" Cosha yelled, seeing his plans break apart before his eyes. "All must be according to Master's wishes!" Cosha lunged at Link, who was on the ground and still holding his stabbed side.  
  
"Cosha, what's gotten into you?!" Raykel got in front of him, punching his stomach hard. Cosha doubled over in pain, and stared open-mouthed at Raykel.  
  
"Master..." He almost looked pleading. Raykel shook his head. "Curse you!" shouted Cosha in rage, and turned, running away from Raykel.  
  
"No! Get back here, Cosha! I can't allow my student to run off!" He ran after Cosha, but Cosha suddenly turned, and punched Raykel's face so hard he was thrown to his back. "Leave me alone! You are no longer my MASTER!" With that, Cosha ran off into the forest, and Raykel had to let him go.  
  
Raykel rose and walked back to Link, who was rubbing an enchanted Arlia bud on his wounds. Link stopped and looked up at Raykel, smiling. Raykel was very startled by his smile, and suddenly felt indescribably guilty for trying to kill the benevolent young man.  
  
"Link, I....." Raykel said sorrowfully.  
  
"I know." Link replied, "You didn't really want to kill me, did you? I'm so glad you could overcome whatever was possessing you to hate me!"  
  
"You're saying...that you'll forgive me just like that? I don't deserve forgiveness."  
  
"Of course you do! Everyone does, if they're truly sorry." An emotion-filled smile came to Raykel's face.  
  
"Link...I am so sorry." Raykel said, meaning it. Link simply smiled in return.  
  
buSection 3  
  
Wolfos Problems/b/u  
  
Later that night, Raykel was sitting at the edge of camp, staring into the forest. He was thinking about Cosha. iCosha was so eager to train with me at first, when he joined the Royal Guard a year ago...he was always a willing student../i.Raykel looked up at the canopy of the forest, and saw a few specks of light; stars trying to shine through the thick ceiling of leaves. Then he looked over to the sleeping Link, who could sleep for about and hour more before it was his turn to watch. iEver since a few weeks before the first dragon attack...a few weeks before Link became Zelda's bodyguard...Cosha had been acting strange. I didn't notice it because the change was so gradual, and I was changing for the worst as well. What brought all this on? I wonder if I will ever see Cosha again...I want to see my old student, the Cosha who was good...maybe he will come back and be his old self. /iSuddenly his thoughts were interrupted by a noise in the forest off to the right. Raykel looked that way, straining his eyes in the darkness of the night, and still could not make anything out. He dismissed it and returned his eyes to the forest in front of him; but moments later, he heard the noise again. This time it sounded closer, and Raykel could identify it as the crunching of dead leaves under something's foot or paw. All of the sudden the horses went crazy, something had spooked them. They hadn't been tied down really securely, so in their frantic terror, they broke loose and went racing off into the forest. The noise sounded again, as if in response to the horses running away, and Link woke up from all the noise. Raykel walked over to him, motioning for him to be quiet.  
  
"We have company at three o'clock." He whispered.  
  
"It's three o'clock in the morning?" Link asked sleepily, not understanding.  
  
"Sshhh! No, something's approaching us from the right!" Link was suddenly awake, and nodded in comprehension, not wanting to make a noise. He got up and put a hand on the hilt of his sword, and he and Raykel watched a bush to the right, about ten feet away from them, from which the noise seemed to be coming. When nothing happened, the two looked at each other, silently agreeing to attack if they heard the noise again (they didn't have to speak to each other to agree on it, it's a warrior thing). Suddenly they heard the crunching of a dead leaf again, much closer, and both leaped at the source of the noise.   
  
"Hhaaaaaa!" They both yelled, and as they burst through the bush, they stopped short, seeing nothing. Then Link looked down and saw a rabbit eating from a small patch of grass, growing between piles of dead leaves. Raykel and Link looked at each other, feeling rather stupid, then they started laughing. They stopped when they heard the growling. They looked in front of them and saw what they had before mistaken for another bush in the darkness, open it's red eyes. A huge, green-furred (with black highlights) wolfos that had been lying in wait lunged in their direction. As the men raised their weapons, the beast landed and crouched down, eating the terrified rabbit in one bite. It looked up at the dumbfounded men, who were staring wide-eyed at the creature.  
  
"What? I was hungry!" Link and Raykel kept staring at the huge, green-furred, red-eyed, italking/i wolfos. "You two got a staring problem?"  
  
"Ehhh...s-sorry...it's just that...we've never seen..." Link stuttered.  
  
"A giant, plant-colored speaking wolfos? Not many people who see me live to tell the tale...eh, whoops! I mean not many people see me at all because of my camouflage fur, heheh. Wolfoses from my family have evolved from the small, grey and white, unintelligent ones found all over. By the way...have you two seen any more rabbits?" The wolf suddenly turned serious.  
  
"No." Raykel answered.  
  
"Awwww..." The wolfos now seemed very disappointed. "I may seem happy but I have a very big problem, you know. Rabbits are the only kind of food my family and I can eat! We would go elsewhere and find better game, but we are surrounded on all sides by other wolfos clans who aren't evolved but have numbers far superior to that of my family. If we leave, they will tear us apart unless we give them food...but needless to say, there is barely enough rabbits left to feed my family and I. I was going to eat those tasty-looking horses when they went crazy and ran away, but I can't run as fast as a horse...and you probably wouldn't like that anyway."  
  
"Well it wouldn't have mattered, because now they're probably going to be eaten by the other wolfoses! Good thing we had all of our gear off of them...Why is there so few rabbits?" Link asked, "I thought they made babies like crazy!"  
  
"They do reproduce quickly, and there would be enough if just my pack and I were eating them, but monster trees also eat them! As if eating all the rabbits wasn't bad enough, those terrible trees eat every living thing they come in contact with, even wolfoses! I've tried to destroy the leader of the monster trees, which would destroy them all, but I can't get near it without getting whipped! Those trees are a wolfose's bane, I tell you! You two wouldn't mind helping me out, would you?"  
  
"You seem to know your way around this forest, wolfos." Raykel said. "If you help us, we will gladly help you. First tell me this, have you seen any dragons or anything else strange around here lately?"  
  
"Well, no...the last time I saw a dragon was a year or so ago...dragons live all the way over in the mountains, and I know where those are but I never go there...."  
  
"Excellent. We destroy these 'monster trees', help you and your family get enough meat to escape the ring of other wolfoses, then you lead us on a safe path to the Stalfos Swords...uh, the mountains, that is. Fair enough?"  
  
"It's a deal!" the wolfos said, grinning. "By the way, my name is Vux."  
  
"Oh, excuse us! I am Raykel, and this is Link." Raykel stopped talking and yawned.  
  
"Ooops...I almost forgot that humans sleep at night! You two finish your rest. I'll come back in the morning and lead you to the trees, okay?" The Hylians nodded, and after Vux left, Raykel resumed his watch for another hour. He then awoke Link and Link watched until dawn, when Vux returned.   
  
The two men ate breakfast, sharing some with the starved wolfos, then they set off to the monster trees, which the wolf said were no more than about ten miles away. On the way, the wolfos explained the monster trees. He told the Hylians about how the monster trees were rooted in the ground immovably like normal trees, but they used vines and poisonous thorns to chase away or eat anything that came close. They all were in the same area, and on the outer perimeter of their group were the guard trees, which had more vines and thorns than the rest. In the middle of their community was their Queen Tree, and if you destroyed that tree, you destroyed every single one of them. Unfortunately, the wolfos didn't know how to hurt the trees, but said that every tree opened its eye when attacking with thorns. In three short hours, the group reached the first monster tree. It was a very large tree but looked almost normal from fifty yards away, and Vux stopped, pointing at it.   
  
"I'm not going any closer to that thing! If you go strait past it and keep going, you should eventually get to the leader tree. Good luck!" The wolfos stood still, staring at the tree in fright. Raykel and Link put their camping gear down, and proceeded towards the monster tree. As they approached, they noticed some skeletons of wolves and rabbits and even a few birds lying around the bottom of the tree. There were many roots twisting on, over, around, and amongst the bones, and the poor owners of the bones had obviously become trapped and then had the life slowly sucked out of them; the nutrients from their dead bodies nourishing the killer tree.  
  
As soon as Link and Raykel were within fifteen feet of the tree, large vines came down from the branches and started whipping about in every direction. The Hylians were only whipped a little bit before they backed out of range of the tree.  
  
"Ow!" Link said, touching a whip-scratch on his forehead. "That tree wasn't even aiming for anything, but there's so many vines that it will be impossible to get through that mess without cutting a few!" Link drew his sword and raised his shield, going forward into vine-range again; and Raykel followed, his blade also ready. The vines started whipping about again, but as the first one struck Link's shield, he severed its tip. It had been a rather small vine, and now several larger ones rushed towards him.   
  
"The tree's vines attack you more if you cut them...they know where a threat is by feeling where they are damaged!" Link said, and proceeded farther into the midst of the rope-like appendages, cutting any that came close. Soon some got cut by Raykel's sword and more started going after him as well. Link and Raykel were separated from each other, each hacking at the seemingly endless entanglement of thrashing vines around them. It was then that the tree showed that it had some remote and twisted form of intelligence.   
  
Link was cutting numerous vines attacking from the front, and a vine sneaked up behind him, very low to the ground so it would not be detected, and wrapped itself around his boot. It yanked on Link's ankle, tripping him. He fell to one knee, trying to get the vine off and battle many others at the same time...but there were too many. A vine wrapped around Link's sword arm, while two more grabbed his shield. While he was preoccupied with those, the tree sensed it's opportunity to win the battle, and four vines curled around Link's chest, and started dragging him towards the tree's huge trunk.  
  
Meanwhile, the tree was less concentrated on Raykel, so he easily cut up the five or so vines sent at him, then spotted Link being dragged away. He quickly ran over to Link, slashing at several vines in the process, and started trying to cut the vines holding him. He quickly cut them all, and Link rose to his feet.  
  
"Thanks!" Link said, then more vines started closing in. They attacked from all sides in a last frantic attempt to destroy the Hylians, and Link and Raykel were pressed back to back as they fought off the vines. Eventually the attacking vine's numbers dwindled, and the attack stopped abruptly. The few vines that were still intact retreated back into the tree's branches. Link and Raykel stood ready to fight more vines for a few seconds, but then turned towards the tree's trunk as they heard its bark moving. A small bump in the middle of the tree split down its middle and opened sideways to reveal a hideous yellow eye with a triangle-shaped iris.  
  
"It's going to use its thorns!" Raykel warned, and both of the warriors' eyes were drawn to the branches above them as red-tipped thorns emerged from them. Link raised his Hylian Shield (he had gotten a new one since the other one had broken in the Warrior Contest) above his and Raykel's head (Raykel had to duck very low to get under it, due to his tallness). The tree released its thorns and they scattered as they hit the shield. After those were shot out, more replaced them, in a continual shower of thorns.   
  
"We can't stay under here forever..." Link said, but he could not see a way to move from under the shield without being hit by thorns. Then he looked at the tree's trunk.  
  
"The eye!" He realized. "We have to hit it!" Link was a bit indisposed, so Raykel got out his bow and shot an arrow into the monstrous tree's eye. An odd screeching sound filled the air, and the tree instantly stopped producing thorns. It made a sort of slumping motion, and remained motionless. Link lowered his shield.  
  
"Nice shot!" Link complimented Raykel.  
  
"You could have done better," Raykel commented.  
  
"Naw..." Link said, but the two stopped talking and proceeded past the monster tree. About twenty feet in front of them they saw nothing less than...another monster tree. As they approached it, it's vines came out and attacked; but it had far less vines than the tree they had just defeated. They easily cut up most of the tree's vines, and it quickly opened its eye and began forming thorns. Before the tree could shoot the thorns, Link drew his hookshot and plunged its hooked blade into the tree's eye. It shuddered and went limp like the first tree, but unfortunately the hookshot stuck, and Link was pulled over to the tree's trunk.   
  
"Whoa!" Link said as he was jerked towards the tree by the hookshot's chain, and he slammed into the tree's trunk, about ten feet above the ground. "Ehh..." Link hung on and pulled his hookshot out of the tree's eye, then fell to the ground. He was unable to position his feet under him, and fell roughly on his backside.  
  
"Ow! Hm...maybe arrows are better..." Link said sheepishly. Raykel laughed.  
  
"Yeah...maybe." He went over and offered Link a hand, pulling him to his feet. Suddenly they head a noise back in the direction of the first tree they beat a few minutes ago, and vines started moving in it's branches again.  
  
"Uh-oh! Looks like we only stunned it." Link said disappointedly.   
  
"We had better move on before it attacks us again...or this one wakes up." Raykel said, gesturing towards the tree they just beat. Link and Raykel moved on, and encountered many trees. Each time they worked as a team, fighting back to back when vines attacked; and when the trees opened their eyes, Link took out his shield and Raykel shot the eye with arrows. The Hylians kept on fighting and progressing, and after maybe ten trees, they began to wonder if they would ever find the Queen Tree. Their question was answered after the very next tree they fought. As they passed that tree, they saw in front of them a very large tree, much bigger then the other ones they had fought. Immediately vines came from the tree, even though the men were forty feet away from it! The vines were quite large, and all attacked at once, nearly hitting the two tired men before they could react.   
  
Despite the quickness of the attack, the men were able to get in position for fighting before the vines reached them. By now they had become very good at killing vines, so the larger ones were only slightly more challenging than the other vines. This giant tree appeared to have a larger number of killer vines than the other trees, but not as many as the guard tree, so it still wasn't very hard. Link and Raykel made quick work of the vines, and approached the tree's enormous trunk. Link raised his shield as thorns predictably started forming above the two warriors. Raykel drew his bow and aimed at the trunk, where he knew the eye would be opening any moment. iAlmost done,/i he thought, ijust this one more tree, and they'll all be finished! /iTo his surprise, one eye did not open on the tree. Many eyes opened. All down the huge trunk there was a line of fifteen golden-yellow eyes, all opening at once, except the one at the very top.  
  
Raykel was not discouraged, however. He grinned, determined to hit them all. No stinking tree was going to defeat the Captain of the Royal Guard, he thought! As he shot an arrow at the first eye, all of the eyes closed, making the arrow bounce off the bark, and one eye in the middle of the trunk opened. Thorns rained from above, and Raykel shot at the middle eye. It closed too, and one near the top opened. Raykel growled in frustration and kept shooting. Eventually he hit three of the eyes, but the thorns were not stopping; and by the time Raykel hit a fourth eye, some vines were beginning to lower from the upper branches of the tree.   
  
iThey've regenerated! /iLink thought, glancing back at Raykel. Raykel had seen them too, and began firing arrows at the eyes more rapidly. The continuing barrage of thorns had still not stopped, and the vines were getting lower. They reached the warriors and Link was forced to slash at them with his left hand, the right one still holding the shield. Link couldn't fight them all off, so some got over to Raykel and he put away his bow to slash at the vines as well. The men's movements were greatly constricted because they couldn't move out from under the shield (and one of Link's arms were busy and Raykel was still crouching because he was much taller than Link and he had to fit under the shield), and the vines got through their weakened defense. A thick vine grabbed Link's left shoulder, and another whipped that arm, almost making him drop his sword. A couple vines had reached Raykel's legs, and suddenly they yanked the legs towards the tree, knocking Raykel over. Having no more reason to waste thorns, the tree stopped making them, focusing on entangling Link and Raykel in its deadly vines. Link dropped his shield and soon both of the men were swordless, their blades dropped because of the repeated efforts of the tree, and vines began to wrap around them.  
  
"Shoot!" Raykel yelled, as the vines began dragging him towards the trunk, and the vines around Link soon followed suit. In a few seconds the trapped Hylians were pulled up against the trunk by the vines, and more big vines started tying them to it. They both struggled as hard as they could, and it occurred to Link that he could use the Golden Gauntlets. He called upon their power, breaking the vines binding him, but had no shield to block a single, well-aimed thorn which shot from a tree branch and hit his right arm. Link immediately felt dizzy, and vines caught him as he fell forward. Once again they pinned him against the trunk next to Raykel's struggling form. Now that the tree had them both in it's grasp, it prepared to finish the job. The very highest eye in the line on the tree's trunk chose that moment to open. It was a great eye, bigger than the rest, and was blood red. It began glowing, and a strange power began to work on the two trapped men.  
  
They began to feel their life-forces being drained from them. As the light radiating from the Queen Tree's red eye pulsated, more and more life was being sucked from Link and Raykel. iWe have to get out of this somehow!/i Link thought urgently, but he was drowsy from the poison and the tree's vines were slowly draining his strength. Link tried struggling one last time, but could not break free, and his head fell forward in fatigue. Raykel saw Link and tried to call out to him and tell him to hold on, but found he was too weak to yell.   
  
It seemed the two Hylians were doomed to the same fate as the creatures whose bones they had seen, when the tree screeched. Alarmed, Raykel raised his tired head and looked up at the tree's upper branches, which had somehow caught fire. The vines released the two men, and they both fell to the ground. Raykel immediately felt energized again as the vines stopped sapping his strength, and he went to go help Link, who was struggling to his feet. Raykel then drew his bow, and aimed an arrow for the Queen Tree's red eye. He fired. The arrow bounced off the tough eye, even though it was open.  
  
"What the?! What's with this tree?!" Raykel stepped closer to the trunk and fired more arrows, and the tree was so preoccupied with putting out the fire in it's branches that it didn't do much of anything...except aim an especially large and poisonous thorn at Raykel's neck.   
  
"Look out!" Link said as the thorn was released, and just as the dagger-sized projectile was about to hit the back of Raykel's neck, Link shot it out of the air with an arrow. Raykel turned and saw the thorn fall to the ground.  
  
"Wow, that was a close one...thanks." Link was about to say something, but all of the sudden thorns began forming and vines began lowering. In a second or two, the men would either be caught by the vines, or turned into living pin cushions by the thorns. An idea struck Link, and he pulled out an arrow, made it a fire one, and sent it zooming straight for the Queen Tree's red eye. The tree's red eye had resistance to normal arrows, but not magic ones, especially fire. The fire arrow hit the eye, lodging itself halfway in, and immediately the whole front of the tree's trunk burst into flames. The tree screeched once more, except now it wasn't the only one screeching. Link and Raykel had to cover their ears from the screeching of every monster tree in the area. The screeching continued for a few moments, then slowly died into silence. The Queen Tree drooped, and it's leaves withered, some slowly drifting to the ground; and the other trees did the same thing. The monster tree menace had been destroyed!  
  
Link and Raykel, after retrieving their swords, wearily began making their way back to Vux. Link fell behind, holding his right arm where the thorn had hit it.  
  
"Do you think the poison is deadly, Link?" Raykel asked him, "Because I have no idea what to do about it."  
  
"I don't know...I feel very pretty tired, but it's not very bad yet. Maybe Vux can tell us something about it." Link replied.  
  
"I hope so." Raykel said, walking slower so Link could keep up. Soon they reached the first tree they had beaten, recognizing it by the specific arrangement of bones beneath it, and expected to find Vux beyond the tree. They found him, but he had brought company. Vux was there with the rest of his giant green family, all six of them, in addition to about thirty normal wolfoses. Link and Raykel stopped in their tracks, seeing the hungry look on Vux's face.  
  
"Vux? I thought you didn't get along with normal wolfoses? I don't understand!" Link said.  
  
"Can't you see, Link?" Raykel shook his head. "They mean to eat us."  
  
"Oh. We're in big trouble." Link observed.  
  
"Yes we are." Raykel confirmed.  
  
"Stop your yapping!" Vux yelled angrily. "Unless of course, those are supposed to be your last words, heh heh! It was so kind of you to get rid of the Wolfos Bane trees. Now that that problem is out of the way, the ordinary wolfoses only need their meat - you!"  
  
Link drew the Master Sword, once again preparing for battle. Would it ever end? Raykel stood at his back, and drew his long sword, hoping that Cosha had not met his end at the fangs of these treacherous wolves. Vux howled, and all of the normal wolfoses rushed forwards at once. Grimly, Raykel and Link fought them off as well as they could. Every wolf that lunged at them either met its end from one of the Hylians' blades, or got injured and ran off. The normal wolfoses kept coming, and the men fought valiantly, surprising themselves with how much fight they still had left in them. For several exhausting minutes the battle continued, until there were only four gray wolfoses left unharmed. Link, who had sustained a few small wounds and a bite on his right forearm, looked back to check on Raykel. He seemed very tired and had a few slashes on him, but nothing too serious. Link looked back at the remaining wolfoses, and to his surprise, they yelped in fear and ran off. All that remained were the green wolfoses, each larger than a normal one, but none as huge as Vux.  
  
"I can't believe you two are still alive! Grrr...family, attack!" All six of the green wolfoses attacked, three going to Link and the other three to Raykel. Link killed one of the wolfoses right away because it tripped on one of the dead wolfose's corpses. The other two bit at him viciously, but he managed to drive his sword through the second. He hated killing so many animals who were just trying to eat and live, but as a warrior, he knew that sometimes there was just no choice. Fight, or be brutally murdered. Link, in his tiredness, suddenly made a mistake. The third wolfos scratched Link's chest with its big claws, making two very long, but not very deep, slashes.  
  
"Eaahhh!" Link was thrown back, but didn't fall because Raykel's back supported him. He slashed at the wolfos and hit it's snout, making a small slash, and the creature ran away. Link looked behind him at Raykel. He saw that Raykel was still fighting two wolfos, and fatigued as he was from poison and fighting, he turned to help fight the beasts. Vux still had not attacked, and seeing that Link was going to help Raykel drive away the last of his family if he didn't do something, he ran around behind Link, and lunged for the back of his neck.Vux grinned, imagining what it would feel like to have soft human flesh in his beartrap-like, gaping jaws. Link didn't see the wolfos and didn't turn to meet him; but luckily, he had to move to the side to fight one of the other wolfoses. Vux's teeth did not meet with Link's neck, but still found the back of his right arm, and Link screamed in pain as the sharp fangs dug into his arm.  
  
At this time Raykel had been battling the last green wolf that had attacked him, and was distracted by Link's scream. The wolf, taking advantage of this, dug its teeth into his left leg. Raykel yelled and killed the wolf with his sword, it's form falling lifeless to add itself to the growing pile of corpses. His left hand putting pressure on the leg bite, Raykel turned and slashed at Vux with a swift, strong, stroke of his blade. He hit the wolfose's neck with the powerful attack, and the Vux's teeth released their grip as his head fell from his shoulders to the ground. Raykel sheathed his sword and looked at Link's bite wound. Immediately he knew, that however hard the other wolfos had bitten him, Vux had bitten Link much harder. 


	5. Hunt for the Dragonlord 4,5,6

a continuation of Hunt for the Dragonlord, by Talonclawfange   
  
  
  
buSection 4  
  
Taig the Dragon/u/b  
  
Link put a hand over part of the bite (his hand wasn't big enough to cover the entire thing), and dropped dizzily to his knees. While Link had been exerting himself battling the wolfoses, his quickened bloodflow had spread the poison of the Queen Tree throughout much of his body, and finally the effects of the poison were catching up with him. Link fell forward onto the ground. He was dimly aware of Raykel crouching by his side and asking him questions.  
  
"Link are you okay?! It's the poison, isn't it?" Link's body was suddenly racked with pain, and he doubled up on the ground, groaning. "It's worse than I thought..." Raykel said. It was becoming quite painful for Raykel to put weight on his bitten leg, so he sat down next to Link. iThere has to be something I can do, THINK! /iRaykel looked around at his surroundings and searched his mind for something he could do, but found nothing. He knew Link had an enchanted Arlia plant with him, but that sort of thing healed slashes, small stabs, and bruises; not poison. Raykel continued to think, unable to take his eyes off of Link, who was breathing raggedly and still in a great deal of pain. Desperately Raykel dragged himself to his feet, grimacing as he was forced to put weight on his bitten leg. He completely forgot that he could heal himself with Link's Arlia as he began searching the ground for something that could help. He explored around the wolfos corpses and into the trees, but didn't find any trace of their backpacks, which would have been very useful.   
  
Suddenly a dragon walked in front of him.  
  
"Oh this isi exactly/i what I need right now!" Raykel growled, drawing his sword.   
  
"Hey, hold it, pal! I'm not here to hurt you! If it wasn't for me, you would be tree food right now!" The dragon said. The dragon's voice was not yet deep, loud, and powerful like an adult dragon's, it was a young voice, like a teenager's.  
  
"Tree food..? Do you mean to tell me that iyou're/i the one who set the Queen Tree's branches on fire and saved us?"  
  
"That's me!" The dragon exclaimed triumphantly. "I am the Great Taig! Son of the King of Dragons who lives in the mountains!"  
  
"I am Raykel, and I came from south of here. Thank you very much for helping, but my friend is in great danger now...would you happen to know how to counter the Queen Tree's poison?" Raykel asked hopefully.  
  
"As a matter-of-fact I do! Where is this friend of yours?" The dragon asked, stepping closer to Raykel. The horse-sized dragon was shining red, with orange spikes down his spine. He had yellowish-gold wings and underbelly scales, and his eyes were a startling blue. His horns were large and slightly curved, and he wore two gold bracelets with blue jewels on the wrists of his forepaws. His talons were white, and his horns were mostly ivory colored, with tips of black.  
  
"Follow me." Raykel said, and led Taig to Link. When they arrived, Taig's eyes widened in shock.  
  
"Wow! How long has this guy been poisoned?! I'd better hurry..." Link was sweating freely and looked extremely pale. He was still grimacing in searing pain, and his breathing was getting alarmingly quick and shallow. Taig hurried over to him, and took out a pouch, which had been hooked to one of his bracelets. Raykel watched suspiciously.  
  
iWho is this dragon? Did he really save us? If so, then why? Don't those bracelets mean the Dragonlord is controlling him? /iRaykel didn't like leaving Link to a dragon's healing, but he had no choice. If something wasn't done for Link immediately, he would surely be lost. Taig took some black powder out of the pouch and sprinkled it over the poisonous thorn's hole. It was hard to locate the small wound in the mess of blood running down Link's entire arm from the wolfos bite, but Taig was experienced at these things, and found it quickly enough.  
  
"Will he be okay?" Raykel asked.  
  
"Well, there's really no way to tell. Your friend went unconscious a moment ago...now all we can do is make sure he is warm and wait for him to wake up. If he does wake up, it should be in about two hours. In the meantime, you'll probably want to treat the other wounds he has...and your leg. You two must have fought an incredible battle after defeating the Queen Tree." Taig said, looking around at all of the wolfos corpses.  
  
Raykel walked over to Link's still form and fished out the Arlia bud from his friend's belt. He first used it on Link's wolfos bite, which was bleeding more than any other wound, then the slashes on his chest. After that, Raykel used it on his own leg bite; following that with treating all of the small cuts and bruises both the Hylians had sustained from their battles against tree and wolf. While he was doing that, Taig was gathering all of the wolfos corpses into a pile. When Raykel had finished healing all of the wounds, he remembered Taig's advice about keeping Link warm, and looked around for their camping gear. Raykel remembered that they had put their stuff down before fighting the monster trees, but now he could not find it, and thought the wolves had probably run off with it. He decided that it wasn't very cold, anyway. Meanwhile, Taig had gathering all of the wolfos corpses into a pile, and was cutting them up with his claws and tailspike.  
  
"What are you doing?" Raykel asked curiously.  
  
"Heheh! Not only can the Great Taig heal, but he can also make Wolfos Steak! It's very delicious, you see. You can have as much as you want, and the other guy too, when he wakes up! Eh...if he wakes up, that is." Taig continued cleaning (not the washing kind, the kind you do to fish before eating them) the wolf corpses. Raykel thought eating wolfoses sounded gross, but then he realized how hungry he was, and decided that it might not be so bad to try something new, after all.  
  
"So, Taig..." Raykel began, "Why did you save me and Link?"  
  
"Link? Oh, you mean the poisoned guy. Well, ever since I decided to live in the forest by myself, the Queen Tree and its subordinates have tried to eat me. I come here regularly to eat wolfoses and rabbits, but those stinking trees eat most of them! In addition to that, every time I got close to those trees, they tried to wrap me in their vines and eat me as well!" The young dragon complained, "I am very grateful to you for destroying the Queen Tree."   
  
"Link did it." Raykel said. "But saving us from the tree was a favor equal to us killing the Queen Tree, so why did you come back and heal Link? And why are you making us steak? I may be misinformed, but I've never heard of a dragon being so nice."  
  
"To tell you the truth, killing the green wolfoses was a favor to me as well. Whenever I came across them while hunting for normal wolfoses, they attacked me! They were so much bigger, faster and smarter than ordinary wolfoses that I could never manage to beat them."  
  
"That stinking, lying, Vux! He said he hadn't seen a dragon in a year!" Raykel growled.  
  
"Vux? He was the really big one, right? He tried to eat me even more than the rest! Well now iwe're/i going to eat ihim!/i Hahahaahaaa!" Raykel gave Taig a strange look and he stopped laughing. "Eh, sorry. I get weird like that sometimes." By now Taig had laid all the wolfos meat on a big rock next to the corpses, and he began to breathe fire on the meat. Raykel watched wonderingly, thinking that the dragon was burning the stuff to a crisp. To his surprise, when the steady stream of fire coming from Taig's mouth stopped, the meat looked perfectly cooked.  
  
"It's lunch time!" Taig said, but then realized it was getting dark, and looked up thought he canopy of tree branches. The bits and pieces of the sky he saw were pink and orange from the sun setting. "Eh, dinner time, I mean!" He corrected himself. He found a nice plate-like rock and breathed fire on it (killing the bacteria for sanitation), then he put some Wolfos Steak on it, and presented it to Raykel, proudly placing it on the ground in front of him. "Enjoy!" The dragon said, and watched him expectantly. By now Raykel trusted the dragon much more than he had before, but still didn't touch his food yet.  
  
"Shouldn't the cook taste his own food first?" He questioned.  
  
"Oh, of course! Silly me...but it's not like it's ipoisoned/i or anything." Taig ran over to the meat that was left on the big rock, and stuffed some into his mouth, smiling. Raykel then tried his steak, and found that it was delicious, even though it had no seasoning.  
  
"Excellent, Taig." he complimented, looking over at Link, who still had not moved since the powder was given to him. "I hope Link wakes up soon so he can taste it..." Taig took some more steaks from the rock, leaving five or six, and sat next to Raykel to eat. Raykel asked, "By the way, Taig...do you think you could take Link and I to the mountains?"  
  
"The mountains..." Taig thought a moment. "Well...I don't know..." he said uncertainly.  
  
"What? Why not?" Raykel asked. "I thought dragons lived in the mountains."  
  
"I don't really want to talk about it right now..."  
  
"What's the matter, Taig? Is the forest dangerous between here and the mountains or something?"  
  
"Well, actually yes. Very much so. I'm sure you've noticed that as you go farther into the forest, the canopy gets thicker. If we go much farther in, where it completely closes over, we will reach the very dangerous parts of this forest. There are creatures far worse than wolves there...some of the worst creatures are Shiftbats! Through all this danger, there is only one safe path. I do know the path...but I still don't want to go to the mountains...I can't talk about it now. Ask me when your friend wakes up - okay, Raykel?"  
  
"Whatever you say..." Raykel agreed reluctantly. It had been more than two hours since Link had fallen, and Raykel was becoming very worried. He walked over to check his motionless friend's condition; finding that he had a pulse, but it was very faint. Raykel forced himself not to lose hope, and went back over to Taig, talking with him until it was time to retire for the night.  
  
That night Taig insisted that he keep watch by himself, and Raykel was too tired to argue. The dragon kept a vigilant watch over the Hylians, but unfortunately Link still had not moved at all. Link's chest was rising only slightly as he breathed, and signs of life were barely perceptible. Taig turned away from the sight, looking into the forest. Later that night he could not hear Link's breathing at all. The dragon would have checked on him, but didn't have the heart. He feared the worst, and decided to wait until morning so Raykel could check Link himself.  
  
Dawn came, and Raykel rose. The first thing he did was walk over to Link. Link was in the exact same position he had been in last night, and did not wake when Raykel called his name. Fearfully, Raykel reached a hand down and placed it on Link's neck, to check if the poor lad had a pulse.  
  
Link jumped up from the ground instantly, nearly knocking over the surprised Raykel.  
  
"Who? What? Where did those green squirrels go?!" Link demanded, still in dreamland.  
  
"The boy's awake!" Raykel exclaimed happily. Link looked over at him.   
  
"Eh? Oh, it was just a dream. Hi, Raykel!" he said, smiling.  
  
"Are you okay? You seem to be well..."  
  
"Okay? Hmmm..." Link thought a moment. "The last thing I remember was getting bitten by a wolfos...then...a dragon was leaning over me? What happened?"  
  
"Good to see you this morning, Link." Taig said. Link, who hadn't seen him yet, jumped at the sound of his voice and turned around.  
  
"A dragon!" Link said, drawing the Master Sword.  
  
"Wait, Link!" Raykel said, getting in front of him. "Didn't you hear what the dragon said? He's on our side! His name is Taig, and he saved you from the Queen Tree's poison, and saved us both by lighting the tree's branches on fire! As for what happened...You fell unconscious after Vux bit you, remember?"  
  
"Oh yeah...Thanks, Taig! Um, Sorry." He put the sword away. It might have been hard to believe the dragon wasn't just the same as the others he had encountered at some other time, but at that moment Link was too preoccupied with Zelda to bother with suspisions. "So...do you know anything about the Dragonlord, Taig? We have to save Zelda! She could be in big trouble right now!"  
  
"Dragonlord? What's that?" Taig asked. Link sighed.  
  
"That's too bad...I guess all we can do is keep traveling towards the Stalfos Swords."  
  
"Staffloos Sords?" Taig cocked his head to one side.  
  
"The mountains." Link said.  
  
"Oh. I can't go with you..."  
  
"Come on, Taig." Raykel urged, "You said you would tell me about the mountains and yourself when Link woke up."  
  
"Oh, okay...well, you see...I am the son of Cirokaal, the King of Dragons, so you would think I would live with them, right? Well I ran away because my father is a jerk! He's supposed to be the King of Dragons, but he makes me do a bunch of stuff for him...and he never lets me go anywhere by myself! The only good thing he did for me was teach me how to survive in this forest, and he also taught me the only safe path through the dangerous part of it, but's that's all the good he was! And that's not the end of it! I really liked my mother, Sahoriel, but she went away and didn't even say good-bye to her own son! Father didn't do anything about it, either! As far as I'm concerned, my parents can live without me!"  
  
"Taig, it sounds to me like you and your parents simply don't understand each other." Link said, "Have you ever told your father how you feel about him?"  
  
"Well, not really."  
  
"You see? You and your father just don't know each other's problems. Maybe if you go back and talk to him, your problems can be solved!" Link suggested.  
  
"Hm...you really think we just don't understand each other? I never thought of that." The dragon said quietly.  
  
"Also, your mother leaving without saying good-bye sounds very suspicious to me. Maybe your father didn't do anything because she didn't say bye to him either, and he doesn't know where she went. Did he even send a search party?"  
  
"No...but your not supposed to send parties after members of royalty in dragon culture. It's considered disrespectful."  
  
"So there was nothing he could do, if his wife just left without saying a word to anyone. I think the Dragonlord must have something to do with it. I also think we'll find him somewhere in the mountains; and if we do, we may find Zelda iand/i your mother!"  
  
"Okay, you've convinced me. I'll take you to the mountains if it means my mom might be found..." The dragon's eyes were suddenly filled with moisture. "I...miss her so much..." Link walked over to the dragon and laid a comforting hand on his side.  
  
"It's okay, Taig. While you go to your father we'll go to the Dragonlord if we find him. If your mom's there with Zelda, we'll save her, okay? You can be assured that Raykel and I will do everything we can...I really miss Zelda, too." Link said sadly. Taig dried his eyes.  
  
"Well, what are we waiting for? I have father to talk to and you two have captives to save! Let's go to the mountains!" Link opened his mouth to agree, but suddenly the three companions heard a loud growling sound.  
  
"The wolves are back!" Raykel said, looking around for them.  
  
"Um...no they're not." Link said, scratching his head. "That was my stomach. I'm so hungry I could eat a wolfos!"  
  
"And that you will!" Taig said excitedly, "We still have Wolfos Steak left over from last night! Finally, you will taste the Great Taig's superb cooking!" He ran over to the big rock and retrieved the last of the steaks. He warmed them up briefly with his fire, and the three ate a quick breakfast.   
  
When they were done, they set off into the forest, Link and Raykel following Taig's lead. He seemed to know exactly where he was going, so no questions were asked about the path while the three traveled. Sometime in the middle of the trip, Taig mentioned:  
  
"This is not only the safest path thought the forest, it's also the fastest. This way, it will only take one more day the reach the mountains. Any other way could take a week or more. Maybe much more, if you pick a very bad way. In a few hours we will reach a big rock, I like to call it the Shifting Like-like, because it looks kinda like one when it twists it's mouth over to eat you. We can stop there for the night, because it's the halfway point through the dangerous part the Ethereal Forest, or whatever you guys call it."  
  
Like Taig said, the travelers reached the Shifting Like-like in a few hours, just before sunset. It was hard to tell it was sunset because the canopy of leaves was as solid as a roof, but Taig was very good at telling time in the middle of the forest. He said they had reached the Like-like just in time, for it was dangerous to walk even on the safe path at night, this deep in the woods. Taig ran off to go and catch dinner while Raykel and Link got firewood.  
  
Despite the deathly silence of the woods, the companions had a cheerful dinner of some fruit and grizzly bear, which Taig said was his favorite food. After dinner it was time to sleep, and it was decided that Raykel would have the first watch, followed by Link, then Taig. The dragon and Link went to sleep under the overhanging part of the Shifting Like-like, but before he closed his eyes, Taig warned Raykel that there would be a lot of sounds in the forest, and to ignore them unless they sounded like they were very close. Taig then fell asleep immediately, but Link was just drifting off when he heard one of the sounds Taig had spoken of. It sounded like the crunching of bones, and the screaming of a small animal far away. Link found it even more difficult to sleep when he heard what sounded like the howling of a wolfos with a warped voice box. Then there was the humming of giant bug wings, and a ghostly moan. He covered his ears, trying hard to ignore the sounds and go to sleep. It was difficult, but he managed to get some rest after a while.  
  
***  
  
"I DON'T BELIEVE IT! How much will it take, you little brat?!" The Dragonlord yelled, slapping Zelda. "Give me the triforce, NOW!" Dakos cowered in the doorway of the cell. Zelda, secured to the stone wall by handcuffs, glared at the Dragonlord.  
  
"I will inever/i place the triforce in the hands of an evil man. And I doi not/i believe you have killed Link. He is coming for me right now! I can feel it!"  
  
"You can feel ithis/i, you stinking brat!" Zelda gasped as the Dragonlord's hand struck her face again. A tiny trickle of blood came from the side of her mouth.  
  
"Force will only result in more frustration for you, Dragonlord. You can hit me as much as you want, and I will never give the Triforce of Wisdom to you." She said, staring him in the eye bravely.  
  
"Arrggg! You'll be sorry you said that! If I can't slap the triforce out of you, I'll starve it out of you, heheheh. Hear that, Dakos? No more food or water for our stubbon prisoner, until she gives up the triforce!"  
  
"bWhatever you say, Master./b" Dakos said, hanging his head in shame and fear. The Dragonlord grinned at Zelda.  
  
"You see? I will have the triforce. If I can't starve it out of you, we'll try knives next. If torturing doesn't work, I'll eventually kill you to get it. I will have it. You are only delaying the inevitable." Zelda stared at him.  
  
"You are not thinking straight. Whoever you are, you are human in there somewhere...all this violence is not going to help you, trust me."  
  
"Don't try to preach to me, girly-girl! By the way, Link is very dead. I saw him die myself, and so did Dakos. He fell right off his horse, lifeless." The boy said, grinning. Dakos nodded.  
  
"No he isn't!" Zelda argued, trying to beleive her own words. "He will defeat you, Dragonlord!!"  
  
"No! I will NEVER fall! Link is dead, HAHAHAHAHA!" Continuing to laugh crazily, the Dragonlord and his pet dragon left the cell, taking the torch and locking the cell's door behind them. Zelda looked at the floor. iLink IS coming, isn't he? Maybe I'm only imagining that I feel his presence getting closer. Where IS he? He can't be dead...he just can't! /iZelda firmly kept herself from crying, and waited in darkness.  
  
buSection 5  
  
Bats and Cats/u/b  
  
After Link and Taig's watching shifts were over, the dawn came, and the haunting sounds of the forest halted. There was still some grizzly left over from last night, so once again the three travelers had leftovers for breakfast. Once the short meal was ended, they pressed on. Taig led the way, talking about how he and his father didn't get along. After that, he started talking about other things, and Link realized he was just talking to counter the extreme silence of the dark forest. There were no birds, no butterflies, and no signs of life. Soon Taig got tired of talking, and lapsed into silence. Raykel and Link didn't talk either, and simply followed Taig, their thoughts wandering. Because of the darkness of the forest (there was barely enough light penetrating the ceiling of branches to see), Link did not see an object on the ground before he tripped on it.  
  
"Yikes!" he exclaimed as he fell to his hands and knees, his yell startling the other two. Link got up, brushed himself off, and looked behind him to see what he had tripped on. He gasped, seeing that it was some bones. The bones of what, he could not tell.  
  
"Are you okay?" Raykel asked.   
  
"Yeah, I'm fine," Link said, "but I found a iskeleton!/i What was this creature before it died?" Link examined the bones. It looked like a creature with the claws and face of a cat, but a stature which was vaguely humanish, as if it was a cat who walked on it's hind legs; and it had bird-like wing bones, with a scattering of black feathers surrounding it. Taig walked over beside Link and looked at the bones.  
  
"They're probably from a calwot." He said, "They are a tribe of creatures who live close to my clan and trade things with us, like food and metal and stuff. I never liked em' much, but then again I never really talked to them much, either. Since calwots live in the Stalfos Swords, this must mean we're getting close! In another couple hours, we should hit the mountains."  
  
"Uh, Taig?"  
  
"Yes, Link?"  
  
"You said this is the safe path, right? So why is there a dead animal here? That must mean there's something close that has the power to kill a flying cat creature."  
  
"Well, even on the safe path, this forest is never completely harmless. We'll just have to hope we don't find any monsters on our way out…especially a shiftbat!  
  
"What exactly is a shiftbat?" Raykel inquired.  
  
"It's a huge, bat-like monster that lives in small groups," Taig explained, "Some adults are even bigger than me! Their front appendages usually have claws, but they can shift the shape of the claws, so they can be serrated, like a knife, or shaped like teeth or spears…or anything they want, really. They are very aggressive, and the big ones only live on the border of the forests. The smaller ones can live farther in the forest, but they are still kinda big, for bats." Link and Raykel nodded, inwardly pledging to be on their guards. The small group continued through the forest, and nothing unusual happened for a few hours.   
  
The light coming through the canopy of the trees was gradually increasing, meaning that they were close. They continued on, and soon the old familiar sounds of birds singing and insects chirping slowly returned. The group became less solem, knowing that they would soon be out of this huge forest. After about a half an hour or so of walking on, Taig, Link, and Raykel emerged into the sweet sunlight. The group heaved a collective sigh of gratefulness to be free of the Ethereal Forest.   
  
Suddenly Taig let out a cry of dismay.  
  
"What is it?" Raykel asked.  
  
"I smell shiftbats!" Taig moaned, "And I hear them too! We're in trouble!" Before Taig could say more, Link and Raykel heard the flapping of leathery wings, and looked to the left. Coming around a bend of trees, were eight shiftbats of varying sizes. The biggest one was bigger than Taig, the second two biggest ones were about his size, the next size of bat was a little smaller, and the other four were about the size of a human. The shiftbats had heads that looked vaguely wolfish, and had large, black, bat wings. Their tails were long and furry, and their red eyes revealed their obvious bloodthirstyness. At that moment, each bat's feet looked like paws with three long, sharp, talons. The bats were upon the group in seconds, and immediately the two bats that were Taig's size flew at Taig. The dragon yelped in terror and flew away, the two bats pursuing. The bat that was bigger than Taig and two of the smaller ones flew at Link, and the other three went for Raykel.  
  
Link braced himself as the first two bats reached him. The third bat, largest of all of them, hung back; apparently not considering itself needed to kill a human. The two bats clawed at Link with their eaglelike talons, but he held off their feet with his sword. After a few moments they got tired and flew backwards, to hover for a moment and rest. Link took out his bow and shot an arrow into the wing of one, and it fell to the ground, screeching in pain. The second one, infuriated, attacked with renewed strength. It transformed its feet into two large swordlike appendages, and swooped down at Link. Link brought up his shield and the shiftbat's legs were deflected, and Link managed to take a swing at the creature before it got away. He hit the shiftbat's legs above where the sword-like blades were protruding, and the bat screamed in rage, flying around for another pass. This time the bat turned it's feet into two trident-looking weapons, which were like spears branching off in three directions. The shiftbat flew above Link and dived for him, aiming its strange feet at his head. Not too smart. Link simply raised his sword above his head, and the monster could not pull up before it landed right on the blade and died. Link shook the bat off his sword, and turned to face the third and largest bat, which was now very angry.   
  
As the bat began flying towards him, Link risked a glance twenty feet to the left, to check on Raykel's progress. It seemed that Raykel had killed or scared away the first bat, and the other two (one the size of a human, the other just a little smaller than Taig) were now tearing at him. He seemed to be having mostly success in his efforts to defend himself; however, he did have a few scratches on his armor, and a slash down the right side of his face. Link turned back to the large bat, about to reach him. The creature extended its claws, making them grow to twice their former size (the creature's claws had been about five inches long, now they were ten), and dived. This bat's legs were longer then the Master Sword, so the tactic Link had used on the previous bat would not work. Link raised his shield between himself and the huge claws meant for his head, and the talons clashed with it. This bat was a bit smarter than the others, and instead of giving Link time to retaliate, the beast grabbed his shield and flew into the air. Link's arm being attached to the shield, he went up with it.   
  
"Yikes!!" Link yelled, clinging to his shield. The bat flew higher, and Link made the mistake of looking down.i Oh man, I'm going to fall! I hate heights! /iLink tore his eyes away from the ground, and focused on how he was going to get out of this mess. The first thing he did was sheath his sword and undo the straps binding his arm to the shield. He hung on the the side of the shield, dangling dangerously hundreds of feet above the ground. Link heard the bat-thing screech, and knew it was going to try and drop him. Link grabbed and held onto the bat's left ankle, just as it opened its oversized claws, and the Hylian Shield plummeted to the earth. The bat looked down at its feet, and glowered at Link.   
  
Hissing, it tried to stick the claws of it's right foot into him. Link drew his sword and parried the bat's claws. Link soon cut the bat's right leg, and it nearly fell out of the sky, screeching in pain. While the bat stopped concentrating on Link and tried to fly strait, Link climbed up its leg and onto its back. Once the creature had gained control of itself, it began to do barrel-rolls, trying to make Link fall off its back. Link clung tightly to the bat's fur, not wanting to think about what would happen if he fell from this far up. Link tried to think of a plan to get back to the ground, but had no idea what he could do. If he hurt or killed the shiftbat, they would both fall. If he just sat there, the thing might carry him to its nest or something. While Link was thinking, the bat, in its futile attempts to shake him off, did some sharp turns and flew back over to whaere Raykel was fighting. Link saw him, three or four hundred feet below, battling the last bat out of the three which had attacked him. It was bigger then the first two he had defeated, and was definately larger than he was. The shiftbat's appendages were shaped like swords, and Raykel was doing his best to fend them off, but it was clear, even from a great height, that Raykel was wounded and tired.  
  
iI have to go help him! /iLink thought, but still could not come up with a way. iWhere's Taig when you need him?/i Link wondered, thinking the dragon would be a great help at the moment. Link was still watching the heated fight between Raykel and the shiftbat, when suddenly Raykel made a fatal mistake in blocking. The bat hit Raykel's longsword out of his hand and drove one of its long, sharp, appendages through his chest. The blade easily pierced Raykel's armor, and Raykel screamed in terrible pain, falling to one knee.  
  
"RAYKEL!" Link yelled, seeing his friend's attacking bat grin and shove its blade so far into Raykel's chest it came out of the other side of his back. The rock beneath them was speckled with bright blood. Link screamed in anger, and took out his bow. As the bat he was riding on did another barrel-roll, Link shot an arrow into the back of the shiftbat stabbing Raykel. Its sword-foot was pulled out of Raykel as it fell to the ground, lifeless. "Okay, bat," Link said, talking to the one he was riding,"You better take me down now, or you're history!" He drew his sword and held it above his bat's back. The shiftbat stopped doing barrel-rolls and screamed it's rage at Link. It tried to shake him off with more sharp turns, so Link drove his sword into it's shoulder. Bat screeching, Hylian yelling, they both plummeted to the earth. The bat hit the ground first, and since Link was still holding onto its back, it broke his fall. Recovering from the fall, Link quickly jumped off of the bat (after yanking his sword out of it's shoulder, wiping it quickly on the dead thing's fur, and putting the sword away) and dashed over to Raykel, who had collapsed. Link knelt next to him, and put a hand under his back, holding him in a semi-sitting position.   
  
"Raykel, say something!" Link said loudly, digging for the Arlia in his belt.   
  
"Link..." Raykel whispered, "You must go on without me...and save...the princess..." blood was dripping from his mouth.  
  
"No! You're going to be okay, Raykel!" Link rubbed the Arlia on the huge sword wound, but the Arlia, not being especially powerful on those kinds of wounds, did not heal much. Link's hand that was holding Raykel was being drenched with blood, and Link turned Raykel over so he could use Arlia on the wound from the back, as he had on the front. Link then ripped off the top of his tunic, making some large bandages. Link looked down, and from the amount of blood spilling onto the rock on which he and Raykel were sitting, he knew Raykel would not make it without more help than Arlia and bandages could give. Despite this, he concentrated on tying the bandages over the bloody wound, ignoring a noise he heard behind him.  
  
The first shiftbat Link had wounded with an arrow was sneaking up behind him, hoping to kill him quickly with a sharp leg before he could turn around. It's razorlike appendage gleamed sharply in the sunlight as it held it over Link's back. Link and the bat sneaking up behind him were facing the forest; and just as the shiftbat was about to make its move, a big red blur leaped out of the trees, sailed over Link and Raykel, and crushed the bat as it landed on the beast. Taig the dragon turned towards Link.  
  
"Taig to the rescue! What would you humans do without the Great Taig?! I lost those other two bats easily in the forest, retaining minor damage, and came back just to save you! I-" Taig stopped in mid-sentence as he saw Raykel. "Uh-oh! Raykel's hurt! What are we going to do?" Taig lened over Link's shoulder, inspecting the damage. "Oh, wow...that's really bad. That looks like something really, really bad!"   
  
"Taig, listen. Is the there any villages really close to here? The Arlia's healing will help Raykel live for a little while...but if we don't get him to some better healing quick, he'll die in less than half an hour." Link estimated.   
  
"Yes, there is! The village of the calwots, Catalin, is about fifteen minutes away by air. Get Raykel and yourself on my back!"  
  
"Can you carry us both?" Link asked, hauling Raykel's now unconscious form to the dragon.   
  
"Am I the son of Cirokaal and Sahoriel or not? I am a prince, I can fly anywhere with any weight on my powerful wings!" Link had gotten Raykel and himself on the dragon now, and Taig tried to lift off. He hovered two feet off the ground, then dropped back down. "Sheesh! Just how much do you people eat, anyway? Uh, just a minute...I can get us in the air, no problem!" This time Taig got a running start, then lifted off the ground. He flew high, beating his wings as quick as they would go, and in ten or so minutes the three companions reached the top of the mountain; which was shrouded in clouds and mist, and littered with huge trees. Link held onto Raykel and tried not to look down, worried that Taig would get tired and fall out of the sky. Taig was breathing extrmely heavily, from tiredness and the thin air of high altitudes.  
  
"Almost...there..." He huffed. "A couple...more minutes..." Panting, the dragon turned left. In about six minutes of slow, labored flying the dragon reached a village. A creature unlike any creature Link had ever seen flew past them. It was a big, leopard-marked cat, with white bird wings! iThat must be a calwot!/i Link knew. It was also wearing some strange clothes and had a long, pointed tail; shaped somewhat like a lizard's tail, but covered in fur. By now Raykel's blood had poured through bandages and past Link's hand, and was covering Taig's back. The blood-soaked dragon flew into the village and landed wearily in front of a calwot's hut, collapsing on the spot. Five or six calwots that had been walking around (on their hind legs) saw the grusome mess of a dragon, and hurried over. Three calwots were of the same build and had the same white wings as the one which had flown past Taig, but the other three were taller and more muscular, with longer tails and black bird wings. They only had clothes on their bottom halfs, and Link thought they must be males. The male calwots were all solid colors, one white, one black, the other brown; but the female calwots had markings. All six ran over to the resting Taig, and one calwot, the black-furred male, spoke.  
  
"Two half-dead Hylians and the King Dragon's missing son? Just what the heck is going on here?" He looked at Link suspiciousy with his green cat eyes. His 'clothes' consisted of a metal-studded leather belt from which hung some leathery yet soft-looking material. His was not jet black, but a kind of ivery/i dark gray. His long tail twitched expectantly.  
  
"We've been attacked by shiftbats," Link said, feeling a little strange talking to a cat. "My name is Link, you obviously know Taig, and this man here is Raykel. He is very badly hurt...do you think you could help him, please?" The male calwot was still giving him a suspicious look, but then a female calwot, with white fur and black cheetah spots, stepped in front of him. The clothes on her bottom half were like the male's, but on her top half there were two belt-like, metal-studded strips of material crossed over her torso, with cloth stretched between them to cover her chest. Her eyes were a golden green, and her long, white wings looked almost silvery as they caught the sunlight.  
  
"Of course we'll help!" She said, looking irritably at the black male. The black male nodded, and walked over to Link, taking Raykel from him. The seven-foot-tall, very strong cat had no trouble carrying Raykel, and ran towards a large hut to the left of Taig. The female calwot stepped over to Link as he jumped off of Taig's back.   
  
"Sorry about Coflix, he's always like that. Well well, a Hylian! I haven't seen one of you since I was four, and now two of you drop right into our village! I am Saroe," The cheetah-spotted cat said, offering a paw-like hand. Link shook it. Saroe kept talking, ignoring the fact that she got blood on her paw from Link's hand. "I alway wanted to use that human greeting gesture, ever since I was a kitten! We study Hylians in school here, you know. Dragons, griffons, Gorons and Zoras, too...many creatures. By the way...according to our books, you strange human males wear clothing on your chest...why don't you have some?"  
  
"Well..." The embarrassed Link explained, "I had to tear it off for bandages..."  
  
"Oh! No problem! I've got you covered, literally!" The calwot chanted some spell, and instantly Link's tunic was like new. "There you go! Us calwots have very good magic here. I'm sure your friend...Raykel, was it?...will be healed in a few days, so don't be worried about him."  
  
"Thank you very much." Link said, "Is there anything I can do for you in return?"   
  
"Not really, but I will have to take you to the King Calwot, Feelack. All foreigners must see him. But you can do that tomorrow, after we get your friend on his way of healing. Let's go check on him, shall we?" Saroe had completely forgotten Taig, who spoke up.   
  
"Hey, Link. I'm going to rest here a few moments, then fly to the dragon's village. I'll probably be gone by the time you get back, so bye."   
  
"See you sometime, Taig." Link said, walking over to him. "I can't thank you enough for your help." Taig smiled happily.  
  
"Aw, come here, you little Hylian!" He said, grabbing Link and giving him a hug. "Hopefully the next time we meet, my mom will be saved. See ya!" He released the human, and Link, waving to the dragon, left with Saroe.  
  
After seeing that Raykel was situated and had the proper spells put on him, Saroe got Link some food and then took him to one of the guest rooms in her own house (there were some extremely large trees growing in Catalin, and Saroe's house was one of the many built in the branches of these enourmous trees), since it was almost susnset.  
  
"Are you sure you want me to sleep in your house? You don't even know me!" Link pointed out, "But don't get me wrong...I am very grateful."  
  
"If I didn't take you in, I don't know if anyone would. Calwots are very loving and compassionate towards their own kind, but are suspicious of other races by nature. We've been living next to the dragons for over forty years, but we just started trading goods with them ten years ago; all because of our natural suspicion! It's ridiculous! I must be the only calwot in Catalin who doesn't think other species are lesser creatures than us."  
  
"Hmm...well, I'm glad you were around when Taig landed, then." Link said, staring around at the huge tree houses.  
  
"You're just lucky, I guess. Speaking of Taig and dragons, the King dragon is being very disagreeable...first the Queen and then his son left, and now he's accusing ius/i of stealing Taig? What reason would a calwot have for taking his son? I don't know if peace between our tribes will endure...hopefully Taig can calm down his father."  
  
"Well, I talked him into speaking with his dad, at least." Link told her.  
  
"Good. Well, I think you should be washed up before you go to sleep. Silly me, I should have had you cleaned before you ate! Shiftbats are known to carry many forms of unpleasant bacteria, you know."  
  
"Okay...but where can I wash?"  
  
"Where? You silly human!" She said, muffling a giggle with her paw. "I will wash you with my magic." The confused Link sat still as Saroe performed another spell, this time purging his entire body of dirt and harmful bacteria.   
  
"Hey, cool! Is there anything you calwots ican't/i do with a magic spell?" Link asked.  
  
"Well," Saroe replied, "We calwots do not posess either light magic nor dark magic, and we can't teleport or anything really fancy like that; but just about everything else...some calwot in Catalin is bound to have a spell for. I was a mother calwot a few years ago...and you'd be suprised how fast kittens get dirty and rip their clothes! That's why I quickly learned the two spells I used on you."  
  
"I see. Are you sure there's nothing I can do for you? I feel like I'm taking advantage of you or something!"  
  
"Heheh, don't worry, you're not. All the things I did for you, I did because I wanted to do them. If you really want to do something for someone, do it for the King. He'll trust you faster if you do things for him. Anyway, it's about time for bed. I'll be in my nest two doors down, so call if you need anything."  
  
"Okay. Thanks again." Link said, and the calwot simply nodded and left. Link needed nothing at the moment, so he laid down on the soft bed, made of a calwot feather mattress supported by a metal frame. It was extremely comfortable, and Link fell asleep quickly. At first he slept peacefully, but then his dreams were overtaken by nightmares of what could be happening to Zelda. Even his subcounscious was worried about her now, not a good sign. The next morning Link arose early, eager to be on his way.  
  
buSection 6  
  
Trustworthyness and The Dragonlord's Fortress/u/b  
  
  
  
"So, this is Link the Hylian?" The aged, jet-black King of the calwots, Feelack, looked down at Link from his metal throne. Link kneeled.  
  
"Yes, I come from the kingdom of Hyrule, but I'm sure you know about that. Saroe told me you study Hylians. Your Majesty, I would like to know if there is anything I can do to repay your kindness shown to Raykel and I."  
  
"As a matter-of-fact, there is something you can do; If you have certain qualities, that is. The last human that came here could not do this favor for me, and as you've probably been told, I don't trust humans very easily; so it took a while for me to trust her. If iyou/i can do this, I will know you are trustworthy."  
  
"Huh? I don't understand!" Link said.  
  
"Then be quiet while I explain, human!" The King took a deep breath. "There is a black creature that had recently decided to inhabit the mines deep in this mountain upon which we stand. These mines are the source of an ore calwots use to make many metal things, including weapons and armor. There is also gold in that mine, and metal and gold are the main things we trade to the dragons, so they are very important. This black creature who inhabits the mines kills any mining calwot who comes in contact with it, because it can't be killed by anything but light magic, something us calwots don't have. Now do you understand? You must destroy this monster, and if you can do it you must have light magic, and only good, trustworthy creatures possess that. Of course if a creature does not posses it, such as a calwot, it does not mean that they iaren't/i trustworthy!"  
  
"Um, Ii think/i I understand." Link said. "I kill a monster in your mines, and you'll trust me."  
  
"Silly humans...always in such a hurry to say things that they leave out important details. iYes/i, in a nutshell, that's what I just said."  
  
"Alright! I'll be glad to get rid of it if it's evil. Where are these mines?" Link inquired.  
  
"A guard will take you. Coflix! Come here and take this human to the entrance to the mines. Don't go inside yourself, understand?"  
  
"Yes, sire." A black male calwot stepped forward. Link recognized this calwot to be the one who had carried Raykel to get healed yesterday. The cat took Link to the mines, and Link entered by himself.  
  
The mines were very dark, absent of the torches which would usually light them, because they were completely abandoned. Link lit a fire arrow, and continued fearlessly into the mine's black tunnels. After perhaps an hour of wandering, Link knew he would get lost soon if he didn't turn around, so he did. As he entered the tunnel he had just exited, he heard a hissing sound behind him. Link turned quickly, dropping his fire arrow and fitting a light one to his bowstring, aiming at the dark form in front of him. The light from the arrow illuminated a huge, hideous creature. It was completely black, and it's twisted skin crawled as if alive. It had seven tentacles spread out in differend directions. It had two glowing, red eyes, which pierced Link's soul as he stared into them.   
  
Link knew this was a creature of fear. It first intimidated it's opponents by it's huge blackness and horrifying form, then tried to hypnotize them with fear by means of it's great, red eyes. Now it stared into Link's.  
  
"iKneel before me, pathetic creature of light!/i" The monster's raspy voice demanded, "iI control the blackness of fear, and the sun's children are no match for me! Kneel and die!/i" The eyes glowed more intensley, trying to pry into Link's soul and force him to surrender himself to the monster.  
  
Link, however, was not impressed. He released the light arrow into the monster's forehead (or the crawling mass of skin above it's eyes, which Linki assumed/i was it's forehead); and it reared back in pain, it's tentacles reaching for Link in a last attempt to destroy him before it died. Before the creature's appendages could reach Link, it shuddered and collapsed, quickly disintegrating into a pile of ash. iWell, THAT was't so hard! /iLink thought. iIt would have been an easy task for the calwots to kill the beast themselves if they posessed any light magic at all. Oh well, maybe I can finally concentrate on saving Zelda and the Dragon Queen now! /i  
  
Link quickly found his way out of the mines, to the waiting Coflix.  
  
"Well, well. I must admit I never thought I would see you again." The calwot said in it's calm voice. "Perhaps I underestimated you. I am sorry for my rudeness in the past. It is an honor to finally meet you, Hero of Time." The cat extended a paw to shake.   
  
"Huh? How did you know?" Link, perplexed, shook the cat's paw-like hand.  
  
"I never thought I would use this human greeting...But like I said, it is an honor. The woman who came here and left a few days ago said that the Hero of Time was approaching our village. Even though she could not beat the monster in the mines, she assured myself and the King that the Hero of Time could defeat it easily. Oh yeah, she also said your name was Link."  
  
"If you and the King already knew my name was Link, and I was the Hero of Time, why didn't you just trust me in the first place?"  
  
"The King had to test you. Plus we ireally/i needed the monster to be destroyed, heheh. Let's get back to the King."  
  
"I would have killed it anyway, if the King just asked! Wait a sec...just who was this woman who knew me, anyway? It couldn't be Zelda..."  
  
"I can't tell you. It is a calwot rule not devulge any information about a person unless they say you can. The woman said I could only tell you that you know her, and what she said about you." With that, the two returned to the King. Saroe was waiting there, and her and Coflix briefly licked eachother's snouts, the calwot greeting. Link told the King what happened in the mines.  
  
"Well, you have indeed proven yourself, Link. Or should I say 'Hero of Time'? The humans have such interesting titles." The King stated, "You have done us a favor that we can't repay easily, even with the hospitality and such; so it is my turn to ask: what can the calwot tribe do for you?"  
  
"Um, well you see my friend's been kidnapped by a dragon, and I've already wasted a lot of time getting to this mountain, so please say you can tell me something about the Dragonlord!"  
  
"Dragonlord? The only Lord of Dragons I know is Cirokaal."  
  
"Oh no! You don't know of the Dragonlord? If I don't find Zelda soon, terrible things might happen to her, maybe terrible things are happening now! Tell me, has anything unusual happened lately, other than the disappearance of Cirokaal's family?"  
  
"Actually, yes. A huge, black cloud is curently floating on the other side of the mountain, and it's been there a very long time, ever since Sahoriel vanished. If you wish, some calwots can take you. Nothing is really known about the cloud, though. Calwot and dragon alike have not investigated it since it is far away and not causing any problems. It's just a cloud, after all."  
  
"That's the ionly/i strange thing you know of?"  
  
"Other than Cirokaal and the dragons' rudeness, yes." The King said. Link was a little dissapointed, but decided not to give up. At least he could investigate this cloud. It iwas/i very unusual for a black cloud to stay in one place for long amounts of time.   
  
"I'll leave immediately." Link said.  
  
"Are you certain? I don't usually tell information about other creatures, but I must tell you this: the last person taken to the cloud by a calwot a few days ago has not returned yet. The calwot disobeyed my orders not to go into the cloud, and has not returned either."  
  
"I'm certain. There is something very suspicious-sounding about this cloud." Link said.  
  
"As you wish. Since Saroe and Coflix are the only calwots other than myself who are acquainted to you, they will take you." Feelack turned to the two, who were standing to the side. "Do you two have anything to do right now? If not, take Link to the cloud. Even if he dies, do not enter yourselves." The King ordered.  
  
"Yes, Your Majesty." They said in unison, bowing. Link turned to the King.  
  
"Thank you. I wont die in there, okay? I will be back so Raykel and I, and hopefully Zelda, can go back to Hyrule. By the way, do you and your clan want to be part of Hyrule?"  
  
"You know, humans, although silly and ambitious creatures, have always been an interest of mine...even if it doesn't show. Hyrule does have a lot of goods us calwots could use...such as bombs, potions..." The King stroked his wiskers thoughtfully. "We could even learn to use some of the weapons made there for more efficient hunting. Using spells for everything can be mentally exhausting. I think maybe it's time for the calwots to come out of our shell. The citizens of Catalin will vote, and if the majority agree with it, calwots will go with you when you go back to Hyrule, and negotiate with your King. It sounds good to me."  
  
"Alright! The more, the merrier, as far as the King of Hyrule is concerned. I know him personally, he's very nice." Link said. After a brief farewell, Saroe and Coflix each took one of Link's arms. iMore flying high above the ground./i Link made a sour face. iHow NICE. Heights just can' t leave me alone lately, can they? /iLink thought unhappily, but there was no other way. The cats lifted off and flew out of Catalin, towards the other side of the mountains, on to the pitch black enigma of a cloud.  
  
Darkness enveloped the calwots and Hylian as they entered the thick darkness of the cloud. After flying a few minutes in ominous silence, Coflix spoke.  
  
"Saroe, you know we can't go much farther in..." he said.  
  
"Oh, cut it out, Coflix! You're always like this! We'll go until we have a reason to stop and turn around!" Saroe hissed.  
  
"What?! We can't do that! The King's orders..."  
  
"Listen Coflix, I know our King is wise, but in this case he wants us to go back to Catalin and leave Link alone because he doesn't care what happens to him! Well iIido! If you don't like it, you go back; because I can carry him by myself!" She growled. Coflix thought a moment.  
  
"You're lucky I'm your friend, Saroe." he said with a smile.  
  
"Heheh, I know. I'm pressing my luck, but I'm just so sick and tired of calwot racism. You care about humans, don't you?"  
  
"I suppose..."  
  
"Well they would be mighty dissapointed if we dropped their 'hero' halfway into a black cloud and left! I wish the King could see things my way..."  
  
"I guess, but I don't think Catalin would like 'your way' very much, even if the King did. The citizens don't respect the King as much as they did when he was young and strong. I don't even think they will vote for calwots going to Hyrule, despite the good reasons to do so. Perhaps things would be different if Feelock were King."  
  
"Who's that?" Link asked, releived that they weren't yelling anymore. An altercation between the cats could result in a certain Hylian being dropped, and Link didn't want to imagine that; he was having enough trouble keeping himself from looking down. He looked up at Coflix, wating for an answer.  
  
"Feelock is Feelack's, or the King's, only son. He's an only child because the King refused to have kittens with any cat but his life mate, who died after having Feelock. Feelock would be King right now, but he isn't around. The old King mantains his beleif that Feelock will return to take his place as the new King before Feelack gets too old...but I don't believe it."  
  
"Why would Feelock just leave like that? Did he not want to be King or something?" Link questioned. Coflix explained.  
  
"No one really knows why the King's son left. It was like when Taig and Sahoriel dissappeared, without a good-bye. Back when Feelock was born, he was a good kitten, growing into a strong leader, but during his teen years, about five years ago, he got rebellious. Nothing very serious happened between father and son until one day Feelock just left."  
  
"That's sad. I wonder if Ganondorf had anything to do with it? He was in power five years ago."  
  
"We don't think so. Calwots left him alone and he left us alone."  
  
"It ticks me off!" Saroe interrupted, "We should have helped the humans and fought Ganondorf! I would have gone and helped myself if I hadn't been a mother cat back then! Children can be such big responsibilities...but I think I'll have another two or three next year anyway..."  
  
"With who?" Link asked curiously. "I didn't see a husband in your house."  
  
"Calwots choose mates in a way closer to cat tradition than human and dragon tradition. We don't have a set-for-life mate unless we really want one. I don't have one because I just want kittens, not a male to bother me all the time. Kittens stay with their mother for two to five years, then they leave; except Royalty who of course stick with the family. My kittens left only a year ago...I miss them!" Link looked forward into the cloud. iThat changing mate thing is pretty nasty,/i He thought, but didn't dare say it out loud to the two cats who could drop him if they wanted to. Besides, he didn't want to be rude. As he was looking into the blackness of the cloud, he saw something.  
  
"Hey, guys! There's a...hm...is that a building? I see torches." Link pointed, and the cats flew in the that direction.   
  
"It seems to be a structure of some sort." Coflix said. The two cats and the human flew towards the mysterious form, and as it materialized out of the clouds, they saw that it was indeed a building. Or the front of one, at least. What they saw was an enourmous doorway, big enough for a large dragon, set into an exceptionally large wall. Huge stairs ran up to the door, and the front of the structure was so big it disappeared into the clouds on all four sides, so it was impossible to determine the true size of the fortress. All of it was made of black stone, almost blending in with the dark clouds. It would have been extremely difficult to spot if not for the huge torches on either sides of the door. The cats landed on the top of the big stairs and put Link down.  
  
"This builing must be floating in the cloud, cool! Wow, this building looks big enough for dragons to me! It ihas/i to be the Dragonlord's fortress!" Link said, seeing that each stair was half as tall as him.  
  
"I am afraid we must wait for you here." Saroe said. "We can bend the rules, but not break them. We might be put in jail for disobeying direct orders from the King if we advance any further. How long do you think you'll be in there?" She asked.  
  
"I have no idea." Link said. "In the worst case scenario, I'd say a day."  
  
"What? We can't wait that long!" Coflix protested.  
  
"We can and we will!" Saroe firmly declared. "If we don't go in with him, the least we can do is stay here and not leave him stranded!"  
  
"Okay..." Coflix reluctantly agreed.  
  
"Thank you both. I will be back." With that, Link turned to the great door, and enterred the fortress of the Dragonlord. 


	6. Hunt for the Dragonlord 7,8

a continuation of Hunt for the Dragonlord, by Talonclawfange  
  
Note: In section 8: Final Fight of the Sadistic Dragonlord, the Beginning of Chain, sadistic means nothing more or less than he enjoys inflicting pain on others. A defenition in a dictionary I saw suggested something more, but I'm not using the word that way, got it?  
  
buSection 7  
  
Friends and Foes Within the Fortress/u/b  
  
It was even darker in the fortress than it had been outside. Link stood still a few moments, letting his eyes adjust to the dim light of the torches hanging dozens of feet above. Link could feel Zelda was in this fortress. He didn't know how to explain it, but he knew she was here. As soon as he could see, Link walked on. He was in a huge hall, with pillars reaching up from the floor to support the massive ceiling, which was so high above Link that he could not make it out. The fortress was certainly huge and black. Link knew that if the fortress was as big as he thought it was, one could wander in it for days, and Link hoped he would find something quickly. After a few minutes of walking he came apon a statue. It was a life-sized dragon statue, towering thirty or fourty feet over Link, and it was sitting strait up, as if guarding the hall which stretched on behind it. Link looked at the dragon's feet, and was startled to find the skeleton of a calwot. Strangely, the skeleton was standing in it's death, staring up at the dragon's head. iDoes the dragon come alive?/i Link wondered. He drew his sword, looking up into the eyes of the statue dragon.   
  
The stone sentinel's gaze was strangely captivating, and Link found he could not look away from it. Soon the eyes started to glow a ghostly yellow. They got brighter, and Link continued to watch in wonder, his mind drifting on the space and time reaching out to him and beckoning him to the ancient and powerful stone eyes.  
  
iWhere is everyone?/i Link wondered. He had been walking for days, and it seemed as if he was the only living thing in the fortress. In the long, stretching time during which he had walked, he had covered miles, and not heard a single sound except his own booted feet. There had been a few tunnels branching off from the main one, but they all looked the same, and Link continued forward.   
  
As he marched on in the dead silence, Link stared at the void before him, endless pillars and miles of hall, waiting to swallow him and keep him for all time. He could feel that he was tiring, but he could not stop walking. What am I doing here? Link asked himself, and found he could not remember. He tried to think of his past, but there was only walking and more walking, ever since the day his soul had come into creation; and he would keep walking, until his soul faded with all of the temporary things of the cosmos. No, even after that, the walking would continue, for it had no beginning and no end. The halls of the fortress melted away with the ages, and only the mists of a black and pointless eternity remained. Link was so tired, but could not stop. He had always been tired, and he could never stop. He walked for eternity...continuing on and on, into the depths of time. Space meant nothing, for everywhere was the same, and time meant nothing, for it did not bring any more change than space did. Link walked and walked, feeling his feeble life slip away through the fingers of centuries...  
  
Suddenly his hand felt warm. Not halting the eternal walking, he looked down at his hand, through the haze that was his thoughts. There was nothing in his hand. It got warmer and warmer. iWhat is happening?/i All of the walking seemed very strange to him now. His hand was getting past warm, it was hot. He felt the handle of a sword in his hand but could not see it. iStop walking./i Link's subconscious ordered. Link kept walking, he could never stop...and his hand burned. iStop walking!! /iLink stopped. iI remember, I am here to save Zelda! /i  
  
The black, impenetrable, unchangable walls of space and time melted away as Link opened his eyes. He saw the calwot skeleton standing in front of him, the same it had been days and centuries ago...or was it moments? Link looked down and saw the glowing Master Sword in his hand, and he realized it was burning him.  
  
"Ow!" He said, dropping it. Immediately it stopped glowing. iWhat on earth happened just now?/i Link looked up, and saw the glowing eyes of the dragon statue. Imediately he ripped his eyes away from their captivating glare. Link was now aware of how frighteningly close to death he had been. iThat statue hypnotized me! It hasn't been years, or even days, only minutes! I was going to stand here until I ended up like that calwot, with that statue draining my life. I would have died, and the Master Sword saved me. /iLink picked up the ancient blade, finding it of normal temperature, and walked past the dragon statue, resisting the temptation to look into it's deadly eyes and fall into the pits of death again. He sheathed his sword, grateful it had chosen him to be its wielder.  
  
After only minutes of walking, Link came to a branch in the hall. Two equally large halls stretched off to the left and right. There was a dragon etched into the wall of the right hall, so Link thought he might as well go that way. He turned right, and kept walking. After about ten minutes of walking, Link entered a huge room. From the dim light of torches, Link could see there was three ways out of the room. Two of these ways were smaller than the hall he had just left, only about forty feet wide and tall (this was still pretty big, but much smaller than the other hall). The two smaller passageways were on either side of the middle passageway, which was larger, if possible, than the hall Link had just left. Engraved into the black stone above the huge middle way, was a beautiful dragon. Link entered the middle passage.  
  
As Link reached the end of the relativaly short but huge passage, Link found himself staring into two enormous blue eyes. Two horses walking side-by-side could easily walk into the huge eyes, if they were a door. The head of Sahoriel, the dragon Queen, lifted; and the eyes stared down at Link from far above. Link sheathed his sword.  
  
b"Who is this? You are not the Dragonlord../b." Link stared up at the huge white-orange dragon. And he had thought the energy-element dragon was big! This dragon was easily as big as three energy-element dragons.   
  
"I..." Link lost his voice for a moment, then recovered himself. "You must be Sahoriel! I am honored to be in your presence...you are truly the greatest creature I've ever seen!" Link bowed. "My name's Link! I've come to rescue a friend of mine, and you!"  
  
"bWhat? A human sent to rescue me?! What sort of joke is this?!/i" The loud booming of the dragon's voice and the air from her breath nearly knocked Link over, but he stood firm in front of the Dragon Queen.  
  
"Hey! What's wrong with a human? It's not a joke, your son Taig sent me to save you!" Suddenly the Queen's features sofened.  
  
"bMy...my son? How I miss him...and he does not yet realize how much of an insult it is to send a rescuer after the Queen of Dragons. Okay, human. Because my son didn't know better than to send you, I'll let you save me, but only because of my son, understand?!"/b This time the dragon's breath idid/i knock Link over. He got up, grateful that the dragon didn't have stinky breath.  
  
"Heheh, whatever you say, Sahoriel."  
  
"bYou'll call me 'Your Majesty', got it? I don't need another puny human disrespecting me/b."  
  
"Okay. I'll call you by your title, but only if you stop calling me 'human'! I have a name!" Link said indignantly, hands on hips.  
  
"bFair enough, Link./b" The dragon Queen actually smiled. "bI think I like your attitude, young one. You are nothing like the Dragonlord, although your appearences are similar. However, you do have certain ties with that tyrant..."/b  
  
"What? I don't get it."  
  
"bNevermind. There is only one way to save me, Link. To save me, you must destroy the Dragonlord's headpiece. If you get rid of that, he will not have the power necessary to contain me any longer./b"  
  
"Okay. But first I have to ask you something, Your Majesty. Do you know where my friend Zelda is?"  
  
"bYes. I have superb hearing, and I heard the Dragonlord speaking to and threatening a girl by that name. It was a day or two ago...but I'm sure of where she is, because I heard her moving around a few hours ago. If you leave the way you came and take the hall right of this one, you will find some stairs. Past those stairs you'll find a huge room with a single exit. That exit leads to the dungeons. The cells in the beginning of the dungeons are big enough for dragons, but if you pass about fifteen of them you'll find the cells for smaller creatures. Your friend is in one of those/b."  
  
"Thank you so much!" Link said excitedly. "I'll take care of the Dragonlord as soon as I know Zelda is okay. See you later!"   
  
"bWait, Link. You may find this key useful/b." Sahoriel's enormous paw stretched forth, and Link picked up a small key in it (he was surprised it didn't get stuck between the huge scales of her fingers!), then he ran off to the room from which branched the Queen's chamber and the way to the dungeons. Link followed the Queen's advice, going right and descending down the large stairs. He could feel he was getting closer to Zelda. Link soon reached the huge room before the dungeons the dragon had spoken of, but there was a small problem. In the middle of the room, curled up on the floor, the golden energy-element dragon lay sleeping. Link almost yelled in surprise when he saw the big dragon (but not as big as the Queen) and quickly clapped a hand over his mouth to prevent himself from doing so. The dragon's breathing was incredibly quiet, the reason Link had not heard him before seeing him, and Link knew he would have to be just as quiet if he was to sneak past it. Link really wanted to challenge the dragon which had taken his friend away, but knew he would be inviting death if he awakened the dragon now.  
  
Link drew the Master Sword slowly and silently, and took out his mirror shield, since he had dropped the Hylian one during his fight with the shiftbats (he wondered just how many more Hylian Shields he would have to get before he would stop losing them!). He drew his weapon not because he wanted a confrontation, but because if the sleeping giant awakened, Link would not be caught unarmed. Link began to walk towards the right side of the dragon. He soon reached the dragon, and began silently slipping past it. When he was halfway past, the dragon moved. It's tail whipped around to Link, and grabbed him, pinning his arms, his sword, and his shield to his sides; and lifting him off the ground. The dragon rose, staring triumphantly into Link's eyes with his one good eye.  
  
"bYou idiot! You're the same moron who took my eye and tried to protect Zelda, aren't you? Well there's no way you'll get to her with ME guarding the dungeons!/b" The dragon lifted his head towards the ceiling, his whole body shaking in wicked laughter. Abruptly the laughing stopped, and with one smooth flicking motion of his tail, the dragon threw Link into a wall fourty feet away.  
  
"Ahhh!" Link yelled, as he was hurled through the air. His scream ended in a new yell of pain as he collided with the wall. He fell a score of feet down to the floor, slamming into it with crushing force, his impact spreading cracks through the black stone. Link lay motionless for a few moments, feeling very broken. The energy-element dragon grinned, thinking him dead.  
  
Link slowly rose to his feet, facing the dragon, his sword and shield still in hand.  
  
"bWhat?! You're a tough little insect, aren't you?/b" The dragon frowned, and ran at Link. Link shot a quick glance at the bracelet on the dragon's left wrist, which was making him bend to the wishes of the Dragonlord. Link's eyes were drawn back to the dragon's head as it lowered, great gaping jaws open wide as it charged. Link remembered the King Dodongo he had defeated as a child, and took out a bomb, hurling it into the dragon's mouth. The dragon's jaws closed on the bomb and it skidded to a stop, confused. The bomb exploded, and the dragon roared as it's mouth was burned. As it collapsed, It's great head dropped to the ground, where the Master Sword could reach it. Link ran forward, performing a jump slash right on the dragon's face. It growled in pain, getting back up.   
  
"bYou will die for that!/b!" It screamed. The Master Sword had done some fair damage to the evil dragon with it's light powers, and blood gushed from the deep five-foot long slash Link had put in the dragon's face. The thick blood ran into the dragon's one good eye, and it raised a paw to wipe the blood off. The dragon closed his eye and opened his mouth again, but his time something came out before Link could throw a bomb into it. Link barely had time to raise his mirror shield before a searing stream of energy fire shot out of the dragon's mouth. The dragon's fire was reflected back to it, but an element dragon cannot be harmed by it's own attack, so the dragon simply intensified the blast of heat and power. It became so strong that it began forcing Link back, and he was pushed until he was standing against a wall. The heat was incredible, and Link switched to his Goron's tunic, but even that didn't help much. The heat made Link sweat all over, and he was certain he would be fried, shield or no. The pressure was pinning him helplessly, and thought he could feel his boots melting.  
  
It then occured to Link that he was not trying very hard. He was giving in to exhaustion just because a statue had sucked a bit of his strength and he had been thrown into a wall. Link knew he was extremely lucky that all of his bones hadn't broken when he hit the wall, and scolded himself for not putting up a better fight after such a lucky break. He called forth the power of the Golden Gauntlets, and began to walk forward, pressing back the stream of yellow energy fire with his shield. Link walked forward until he was up to the dragon's mouth, and still the ignorant creature, thinking Link was frying in it's fire, did not open it's good eye to see him. Link stuck his sword into the dragon's toungue.  
  
"bAAhhhhhhh!/b" The dragon yelled, it's fire stopping. It held it's toungue, glaring feircely at Link, who glared back. "bI'll khill yhoooouu!/b" It growled. Link switched back to his Kokiri tunic (he does it instantly with magic, in case you didn't know), and while Link was looking into the dragon's face, it's tail sneaked around in front of Link. It shot up as quick as lightening, striking Link's neck. Link dropped his shield, holding his neck and falling to one knee, coughing hard. Taking advantage of this, the dragon reached down one massive paw, and grabbed Link. Link dropped his sword as the dragon jerked it's hand upward, bringing the little Hylian up to eye-level. "bI have you now, heheh. I never quite crushed you last time we fought, but now it's round two! Let's see your little princess save you this time, AAHAHAHAHAHA/b!"  
  
The dragon squeezed, and Link gasped as the pressure nearly prevented him from breathing. The rough scales on the hand closing around Link dug into his skin. Grinning, the dragon squeezed harder, and Link could feel some bones break. He would have screamed, but no longer had the lung capacity to do so. Then Link felt something bubble up in his throat, and warm liquid poured down his chin. The dragon kept crushing, and Link's vision blurred as he looked into the beast's face.  
  
"bAny last words, insect/b?" It asked mockingly.  
  
"Ughh..." was all Link could manage. The dragon bore it's teeth in anticipation.  
  
"bI thought so. Goodbye, insect...Arggg!/b" The dragon roared as a small arrow was shot into it's one good eye. It closed the eye and dropped Link, bringing both of it's paws up to cover it's new wound. Link hit the ground with a dull thud. He weakly looked over to the left of the dragon, and dimly saw the female human who had visited the calwots. The woman who had known him, the woman to had been taken into the cloud by the calwot and not returned. The woman who had just saved him by shooting the dragon's eye. Link's lungs no longer had pressure on them so he could speak, and he coughed out some blood when he yelled:  
  
"IMPA?!" The Sage of Shadow had been the last person Link expected to find. She had been gone from Hyrule for quite a while, and Link had almost forgotten that he was supposed to look for her while he was in North Hyrule.  
  
"With all that yelling, Link, you're going to cough up a lung." The shiekah woman said quietly, putting away her crossbow. iThat's gross../i.Link thought, but didn't talk. He tried to get to his feet, but too many of his bones were broken, and he only succeeded in hurting himself. With a groan, he lay still. Impa moved in between the dragon and Link.  
  
"Impa...the dragon..," Link coughed, "is too strong, even blind..."   
  
"Don't talk, Link. I sensed Zelda was here the day she arrived and have been looking for her ever since I got here two days ago. This place is enormous and I can't find her, even with my telepathic powers. Now that I've found you, the least I can do is protect you. You can feel her better than I, so you need to go find her. The problem is I'm here too late...it looks like you won't be going anywhere." The shiekah woman frowned, as the dragon tooks it's paws off it's eye and turned it's bloody face towards her. It was quite a horrific sight, the horned face of a giant golden dragon, drenched in blood and growling; and Impa shuddered. She drew her curved shiekah sword, but the noise of it alerted the dragon to where she was. It swept a huge paw into her, knocking twenty feet to the right, into the same wall Link had hit. She screamed as she hit it, and she slumped to the floor. The dragon and Link remained silent and motionless for a few intense moments, then Impa got up, a hand on her right shoulder.  
  
iLink is right...I cannot beat this dragon on my own../i.she thought. Suddenly, as if fate had been reading her thoughts, she heard the flapping of wings. She turned her eyes to the entrance of the room, and saw two calwots, one black-and-white spotted and one solid black, flying towards the dragon from behind. They both said a word at the same time, and spears instantly appeared in their paws. Saroe flew over to Link, and Coflix stuck his spear into the soft skin between the element dragon's neck scales and his underbelly scales. The dragon roared and thrashed, but Coflix nimbly flew out of the way. Impa ran over to Saroe, who was bending over Link, chanting. Impa reached Link just in time to see his bones mended and his cuts close up. Fully healed, Link rose to his feet.  
  
"Wow, thanks! How did you find us?" He said, picking up his sword and shield which were only a few feet away. "And thank you, too, Impa-"  
  
"Link! We don't have time to chat, buddy! You need to go save Zelda while the calwots and I beat this dragon. Don't worry about us, Link, just go!" Link started to protest, but Saroe interrupted.  
  
"Go, Link! With all the noise you and this dragon were making, I don't see why the Dragonlord himself isn't here! You need to save that princess of yours, now! Beat the Dragonlord so all can be as it was between the dragons and calwots!" Link grimly nodded. As the dragon turned toward's it's opponents, Link ran off to the passage leading to the dungeons. iI can't let them down,/i he thought, hoping they would prevail against the dragon. After a minute of running, Link entered the Dragonlord's dungeons. Very strangely he could not hear the battle he knew was going on in the room he had left, and he assumed the black walls must muffle sound very well, except a few places. The calwots must have found one of those places to locate him, and Link wondered if the Dragonlord would reach one such place and discover the intruders in his fortress. Link just hoped the Dragonlord would come after him, not the calwots and Impa, who already had their hands full.   
  
Link walked silently past many dragon-sized cells. All of the cells had heavy meatal doors with locks bigger then his head. Eventually Link reached the end of the dragon-sized cells, and reached the small ones. He could feel his friend! He looked at the metal doors, wondering which one to choose.  
  
"Zelda...?" He called out cautiously. He heard some movement in the cell to his right.  
  
"Help me...I need Link..." A voice said. Link thought that didn't quite sound like Zelda, but maybe she sounded weird because she was behind a metal door.  
  
"I'm coming!" He said and took off the bar which was blocking the door shut, opening it. iWait, shouldn't the cell with Zelda in it be locked a little more securely that that?/i Link looked into the darkness. iA bar closing the door could probably be shaken loose easily... something fishy is going on here!/i Link saw a gleam in the shadows and jumped to the side just in time to dodge a knife thrusting for his heart. As the knife and the arm of his attacker went past him, Link grabbed the arm. He pulled his attacker out into the hall, where the light of torches illuminated him. Link stared down at Cosha.  
  
"This is getting wierder by the second!" Link said, grabbing Cosha's knife and roughly releasing his arm. "What on earth are iyou/i doing here?!"  
  
"Heheh...how did you like my Zelda impression? All the while I've been working for the Dragonlord! Raykel was never my Master, the Dragonlord was! That moron Raykel didn't even realize when I gave him a potion to drink!"  
  
"A potion? What did you do to Raykel?!" Link demanded angrily.  
  
"Hahaha! Didn't you think it was odd how much he hated you, even though in the past he had been a good man? The Dragonlord had me give him a hate potion! It doesn't really control your mind or change your personality, it just makes you completely despise the first person you see! Now do you realize just how great the Dragonlord is? Raykel was supposed to hate Zelda, but unfortunately, he saw you before he saw her. Oh well...I just regret that the potion wore off before he drove that dagger into your throat like he was supposed to!"  
  
"That's not very nice!" Link drew his sword and pointed it at Cosha threateningly. "Tell me where Zelda is right now! I know she's in here."  
  
"I'll never let you get past me! Even though these metal doors are soundproof, I heard you because I have the instinct of a dragon (of course Cosha had really just seen Link's shadow under the door). Run while you can!" Link almost laughed.  
  
"Oh, please...stop the talking, I'll never defeat you if I double over laughing in the middle of our fight!"  
  
Cosha lunged at him, knocking them both to the floor. Cosha raised a fist to punch Link, but Link was quicker. He punched Cosha, and he went flying, landing hard on his back. He got up slowly, shaking.  
  
"Ah...ouch!" He said, but ran at Link again anyway. When he was close he tried to do his little maneuver again, but this time Link was ready for it. As soon as Cosha was behind him, he tried to grab Link's neck, but Link grabbed Cosha's arms, throwing him over his shoulder. Cosha landed hard in front of him, but then started to get up.  
  
Link slashed at him as he got to his feet, and his sword hit Cosha's armor, sending him sprawling to his back once again. Link stepped forward to attack again, but Cosha raised his arms above his head in fear.  
  
"Aaahhhh! No, leave me alone!" He suddenly jumped up and ran down the hall, opposite from the room Link had come from, screaming, "Intruder, Master!" Link was about to go after him, but remembered Zelda. He walked to the next door down and found a strong lock on it. He took out the small key the Queen had given him, unlocked the door, and slowly pushed the door open; sword held ready. He couldn't see, so he lit a fire arrow, which illuminated all of the small room. Sitting in a corner of the cell, with both arms chained to the stone wall, was the Princess of Hyrule. Link would have smiled in joy, but when he saw the condition Zelda was in, a concerned frown covered his face.   
  
"Zelda...what has he done to you?"  
  
"LINK!!" She yelled, and Link saw that at least her voice hadn't been damaged. Her dress was torn and very dirty, and she had cuts on her cheek and neck, and bruises everywhere. Link ran over to her, and quickly broke her bonds with the gauntlets. Despite how weak the princess felt, she threw her arms around Link. He was a bit startled, but just sat there on the ground, holding her. She started shaking, and Link saw that his friend was crying; and felt her tears soaking through his tunic.  
  
"You finally came..." She said happily. "The Dragonlord said you were dead so many times that I almost beleived it! But I knew in my heart you were coming for me! The Dragonlord is so evil..." Her voice was muffled as she pressed her warm face into his chest. He hesitated for a moment, then layed a hand on her head, stroking her hair comfortingly.  
  
"It's okay, Zelda. We're getting out of here, but first I have to fight the Dragonlord." They sat there for another minute or so, until Zelda could compose herself. She finally let go of Link and he stood up, helping her to her feet.  
  
"Cosha ran off to the right hall, so I guess that's where the Dragonlord is." Link said.  
  
"Yes, that's always the direction the Dragonlord went when he was done 'speaking' to me..." Zelda's beautiful, cut, bruised, and tear-streaked face looked at Link's. He was so glad he had finally found her. iIt's not over yet./i He reminded himself, and he and Zelda left the cell. Link paused a few moments to use Arlia on Zelda's wounds, and when he was done he put it away and looked again at the princesses face. To his suprise, she walked forward and hugged him again. "Thank you," she said, giving him one final squeeze and then releasing him. He smiled crookedly.  
  
"Ehem....let's go...Cosha's getting away." They went in the direction Cosha had run. After a few moments they came to a room, and found the man. He was lying on the groud, obviously hurt, and Dakos was leaning over him, with a sharp claw poised to kill.  
  
"Huh? Why is Dakos trying to kill Cosha?" Zelda wondered. "Cosha was the spy in Hyrule Castle, and did quite alot of work for the Dragonlord. Now they're going to kill him?!"  
  
"Stop!" Link said to Dakos, fitting an arrow to his bowstring and aiming it at the dragon. The dragon looked over at him, his claw still suspended over Cosha's face.  
  
"bWhat the heck?! This little human was telling the truth?! Link IS still alive! But, I saw you die myself! You fell off your horse, dead as a stone/b!"  
  
"Afraid not, dragon." Link said, keeping the arrow aimed for the creature.  
  
"bGrrr...the moment my Master heard this twit run in here, shouting about you invading the fortress, he thought he was lying; because he saw you supposedly die like I did. This guy said you were still alive, but we wondered why didn't he tell us that when he came back from the forest...Oh yeah, when he came to us from the Ethereal Forest, my Master threw him in a cell because he made so many mistakes...he didn't get Raykel to hate the right person, and he couldn't even kill Raykel when the potion wore off. The raving fool was actually right...looks like he isn't as crazy as I thought he was, but a brainwashing can turn a madman madder, don't you agree/b?"  
  
"What? The Dragonlord brainwashed him, then put him in jail because he didn't do his job perfectly, and now that he comes back, istill/i trying to be loyal to the Dragonlord, he sicks his pet dragon on him? That guy is gonna be history when I find him!" Link yelled.  
  
"bHeheheh. iIf/i you ever find him! See if you can keep up with me/b!" Dakos ran towards the opposite side of the room, completely forgetting about Cosha, who still lay on the ground, shaking. Link and Zelda ran after the dragon, following him into yet another black hall. iJust how big is this place?!/i Link wondered, iNo wonder Impa got lost in here, there's so many branching tunnels and passageways you could wander for days, maybe weeks! We had better not lose this dragon! /iLink and Zelda sped up, following the dragon as he weaved through many twists and turns in the tunnel. The dragon was fast, and soon the two Hylians could only see his tail as he dashed this way and that, turning into various branching tunnels. Soon the dragon stopped turning, and he ran strait, the Hylians still falling behind. The dragon emerged into a large room and turned to the wall, pulling a switch. A metal sheet fell from a slot above the room's entrance, and Link and Zelda barely slid under it in time. Link's hat fell off and got caught under the metal sheet as it slammed into the floor, sealing off the only exit from the room.   
  
Link's blonde hair fell to his shoulders as he helped Zelda up.  
  
"Wow, Link! your hair is almost as long as mine!" She said, laughing.  
  
"Oh, cut it out. You don't get your hair cut as often as you would like to when you have to cut it with a sword! It really hurts!"  
  
"Okay, sorry." She said, still giggling.   
  
"I'm impressed, Link and Zelda." The voice of the young Dragonlord interrupted. "You actually made it here. I must admit I thought you were dead, Link. I didn't know that useless fool of a spy was telling the truth." Link and Zelda turned, and saw the Dragonlord sitting on a throne on a platform about forty meters away. The throne was red and it's frame was covered in sharp spikes. Unlike the rest of the rooms in the castle, this room actually had some color in it. There were red drapes lining the walls, as well as some dragon paintings. There were two life-sized dragon statues on either side of the spiked throne, both painted realistically to look like red dragons. Dakos was sitting next to one, his tail swaying back and forth like a cat's. The sword-shaped blade on the end of the dragon's tail gleamed in the torchlight as he grinned. The Dragonlord stood and walked down the steps of the platform, grinning insanely at Link. "But now that you're both here, I can kill you as a couple...isn't that just so cute? Hahahahah!" Link and Zelda walked towards the Dragonlord until they were within twenty feet of him. He stopped laughing and smiled at them.   
  
"You won't be doing any such thing!" Link said, drawing the Master Sword. The Dragonlord drew the Sword of Darkness, a black blade infused with evil magic.  
  
"Live by the sword, die by the sword, eh, Link? When I finally have both your triforces I will free my Master from the evil realm, and we will rule all!" The Dragonlord started laughing insanely again, his whole body shaking. The black wing-shaped spike on his back, which held up his cape, had been glued back on after it had been broken off a few days ago; and with the Dragonlord's shaking, it fell off. The end of it clattered to the floor, the Dragonlord's caped drooped, and he stopped laughing. He glared down at it, yelling, "Stinking cape!! You ruined my evil laughing!! Arrgggg!" Zelda giggled, remembering that it was her fault it broke.  
  
"Hey, just who is this Master of yours, anyway? You can't be talking about..." Link trailed off.  
  
"Yes, The Lord of Evil, The Great Ganondorf!" He said, and was about to laugh again, but remembered his broken spike. He undid the belt which held the spikes and his cape on, taking it off and thowing it to the ground angrily.  
  
"I can't let you bring him back! It's time for me to stop your evil for good!" Link yelled.  
  
"Fine! We will fight now. Just you and me. Dakos, grab that princess and make sure she stays out of it!"  
  
"Hey, I'll only stay out of it if your dragon stays out of it, too!" Zelda yelled.  
  
"bOh, I promise/b." The dragon said, taking her and sitting up against a nearby wall. "bI wouldn't rob my Master of the pleasure of killing you two!/b"  
  
"Dragon, if you hurt Zelda..." Link glared at the beast.  
  
"bOh, don't worry, I wont hurt her. The only thing you have to worry about is if the Dragonlord kills you, because then nothing will stop him from killing this little girl here/b." He held Zelda gently, despite her struggling. She stopped, looking at Link.  
  
"You mean iwhen/i I kill him, Dakos!" The Dragonlord shouted.  
  
"Kick his butt, Link!" Zelda yelled. Link was surprised she said that, but turned to the Dragonlord.   
  
The two stared at each other for a minute, each measuring the other's strength. The Dragonlord looked very similar to Link. Their blonde hair was almost the same (except the dragonlord's was lighter and shorter), and the Dragonlord was only about an inch shorter than Link. They looked about the same age, and Link wondered where this young man had come from. He couldn't be Ganon's son, so why was he the boy's Master? Why did Ganon choose a boy like this to be one of his best minions, rather than a monster? Link knew it would be hard to fight the young Hylian.  
  
"Any last words before I slice you to bloody ribbons?" The Dragonlord asked.  
  
"Enough words. It's time to fight! En guard!" Link slashed at the Dragonlord, and the fight began.  
  
buSection 8  
  
Final Fight of the Sadistic Dragonlord, the Beginning of Chain/u/b  
  
The Dragonlord brought up his dark sword, blocking Link's blow. The swords clashed and didn't separate, the two warriors pressing against them. Link strained as he pushed against his blade, but gained no ground as the Dragonlord pressed back just as hard. Link called forth the power of the gauntlets.  
  
"Ah, your secret weapon, eh? I knew about your Golden Gauntlets ever since you battled one of my dragons with them. I'm prepared for you!" The Dragonlord began chanting as the gauntlets helped Link press him backwards, but suddenly the Dragonlord had enough strength to stop himself from being pushed. His arms were infused with dragon-like strength, and he began pushing Link backwards! Link's eyes grew wide in suprise as he tried to stop himself from being forced back. His boots lost their grip on the floor, and he slid on the stone floor, despite his best efforts. Link then jumped away from the Dragonlord, so their swords were separated.  
  
"Wow, I've never met anyone stronger than my gauntlets!" He said, commending the Lord. The man grinned in triumph.  
  
"That's right! And my strength spell lasts until I take it off or it's beaten off, not until I can't breathe like yours!"  
  
iI suppose that means he's going to try to stop my breathing?/i Link wondered, iI'm not surprised...just about every evil person I've met has tried to./i The Dragonlord slashed at Link and he blocked it with the mirror shield. Link then tried to slash at the Dragonlord but he parried again, and the two kept going. As their swords rang against each other Link remembered his fight with Sohran, and how their swords clashing had sounded like a song. The sharp clanging of the Lord's sword reminded Link more of a twisted dirge. He shoved that thought out of his mind, concentrating on the fight. Link picked up the pace a bit, but the Dragonlord could keep up with him. iDrat, he's pretty good! /iLink thought, breaking off his attack and jumping back. He powered up his sword for a spin attack; and the Dragonlord, who had not been spying on Link when he used it, didn't know what it was. He stood there until Link released the attack.  
  
"Shaaahhhhhh!" Link yelled as the energy was released in his spin attack, flying at the Dragonlord. He brought his sword up to block it, but it's pure force knocked him down. He got up, glaring at Link. The Dragonlord jumped at him, and Link did a backflip, dodging the Lord's sword. As Link landed, the Dragonlord rushed at him, punching him in the stomach. The Lord's strength spell was still in effect, and the breath was violently knocked out of Link as he flew backwards, landing roughly on the black stone floor. He got up, holding his stomach. The Dragonlord ran at him, and Link quickly sheathed his sword, performing the Din's Fire spell. The spell enveloped the Dragonlord in flames, and he screamed, rolling around to put the fire out.  
  
"You rotten kid!" He yelled, getting to his feet; his clothes a bit blacker than they had been before.   
  
"You're a kid too!" Link said, reluctant to admit he was a kid, but wanting to tell the Dragonlord that he was just as young. The Dragonlord growled and rasied his hand at Link, firing a dark ball of energy at him, not unlike the attack Ganon had used long ago. Link drew the Master Sword again, deflecting the ball back at the Dragonlord, who dodged it. The Dragonlord then powered up his blade with dark energy, jumping forward and thrusting at Link. Link moved to the side, but the dark sword gave him a tiny slash. Link yelled, putting a hand on it.  
  
"What the...? It's just a tiny cut!" Link said, surprised at how much it hurt.  
  
"Hahahah! You pure-hearted moron! It's dark energy, so it will really hurt you! Remember my nice little arrow? A simple arrow almost killed you!" Link frowned and slashed at the Dragonlord, who hit his blade away with amazing strength. Link almost dropped the Master Sword as it flew back, pushed by the dark magic. iNot good!/i Link thought. He tried to use Nayru's Love, but discovered that he had run out of that kind of mana. iThat's REALLY not good!/i Link thought urgently, bringing up his blade as the Dragonlord slashed at him again. The darkness threw him back again, almost making him fall. Link straitened himself just in time to block another blow from the Sword of Darkness. This one forced the Master Sword out of his hands, and it flew behind him. The Dragonlord grinned as he slashed at Link again, and Link tried to block with his shield, but that, too, was hit away from him. The Lord then slashed Link's right shoulder, putting a deep, dark cut in it.  
  
Link yelled and put a hand over the dark wound, and the Dragonlord punched him in the face with his strong right arm, throwing the Hylian to his back. The Dragonlord sheathed his sword jumped on him, his legs pinning Link's legs, and his arms pinning Link's arms. He smiled insanely at the trapped warrior, who's shoulder was still burning with sharp pain. The Dragonlord powered up his left hand with dark energy, and Link struggled to hold it off as it decended towards his cut shoulder. The Dragonlord was stronger, and his hand gripped Link's dark wound, putting even more dark power into it. Zelda, still in Dakos's arms, screamed.  
  
"Aaaahhhhhhh!" Link yelled as the dark energy entered his body, making it flare with pain from head to toe. The Dragonlord grinned, squeezing Link's shoulder and enjoying his pain. Link struggled, trying to get the hand off before it did more damage, and succeeded in freeing one of his legs. The Dragonlord used more dark power and Link screamed again, but then kicked the Lord's stomach, and he flew off, landing on his back. Both men got to their feet slowly, Link holding his shoulder and breathing hard. It was still infecting his body with painful dark magic, and Link walked over to the Master Sword, picking it up. As soon as he put his hand on it a stream of light magic came from the blade, destroying the dark magic in his shoulder. Link sighed in relief and the Dragonlord drew his sword.  
  
"Just how much is it going to take to kill you?! You're a lot tougher than your girly friend!" The boy said, glaring.  
  
"Zelda is tougher than you'll ever be! You're lucky her light magic was all used up when you captured her, or she would have beaten you!"  
  
"Yeah right! She's not so tough. It was alot of fun scaring her, Link. Securing her to a dark, cold wall and leaving her for a couple of days...visiting her again, and telling her you were dead, it was great! Especially when I took a knife and cut her neck, and her face..."  
  
"Shut up! You'll never hurt the princess again, you jerk!" The Master Sword glowed with light energy as Link attacked. The black magic covered Sword of Darkness clashed with it, and a wave of energy shot from the blades as they clashed. They kept attacking one another, and the ground shook as a wave of energy shot out of the blades every time they clashed. The men kept at it for another dozen minutes, until some rocks were shaken out of the ceiling of the builing, crashing into the floor and breaking to dust.  
  
"The whole fortress will fall at this rate!" Zelda said, and her frightened captor nodded. Eventually the light magic faded from the Master Sword, Link was so exhausted. Luckily, the Dragonlord was equally tired, and the evil magic left his blade as well. The two jumped back from each other, each panting and staring determinedly into the other's eyes. They jumped at each other at the same moment, and their swords clashed one last time and they both fell, laying on the floor and breathing hard. The Dragonlord got up first, and walked over to Link as he was getting to his feet. The Lord punched Link's face again, harder then last time, and he flew backwards, landing hard on his back. The Dragonlord walked over to Link, who was trying to rise, and put a black boot on his throat, pinning him to the ground again.  
  
Link tried to pull the boot off as it pressed down, cutting off his air. The Dragonlord grinned as Link choked, then lifted the Sword of Darkness, blade down, over Link's chest.  
  
"Hahah..." He laughed tiredly. "Now you're mine...I hope Ganondorf won't be too mad at me for taking the pleasure of killing you and the princess! This time I'll make sure you're dead, if I have to slice you to tiny bits!" Link, although he was gasping for air, wasn't about to give up; and summoning the rest of the Master Sword's power, he slashed upward at the Dragonlord with the light-covered blade. The blade hit his face, and he yelled as the light magic entered his tired form through the cut it made. His dragon-controlling headpiece shattered; and he stumbled backwards, his foot leaving Link's neck. Link got up immediately, gasping a bit, and slashed at the Lord, who was holding the side of his head. The Master Sword made a two foot long, one inch deep cut from the Dragonlord's waist to his collarbone, easily slicing throught his black chest armor."Aaahhhhhhhh!" The young man screamed, staggering and falling to his back. He put a hand on the slash on his chest, which glowed with light magic. Link walked over to him, staring down at his pained face.  
  
"Uhhhh..." The Dragonlord squirmed as the light magic hurt him. "It's all over for me...I'm sorry Master." He looked up at Link. "I...can't go on. Kill me..." Link gasped in surprise.  
  
"Kill you? There's no way I can do something like that." The Dragonlord stopped squirming around as the light magic finally faded from his slash, and he lay still, not able to move.  
  
"But...I would have killed you and Zelda...I would have freed Ganondorf and he would have conquered Hyrule..."  
  
"I didn't kill Ganondorf and I'm not going to kill you. No matter how evil you are, you're still human, and so is he."  
  
"............" The Dragonlord stared at Link, not sure what to say. Dakos wasn't listening very well, and thought that Link had said he would kill the Dragonlord. buI'm coming, Master!/b/i The dragon thought, releasing Zelda and dashing over to Link and the Dragonlord.  
  
Link was staring down at the injured Dragonlord when he felt something slam into his back. Zelda screamed loudly. Suddenly Link's knees buckled with weakness and he almost fell over, his strength somehow gone. Something in his chest was keeping him from falling, something he knew did not belong there. The room seemed to get darker and redder, and Link's chest felt warm and wet. He looked down, and saw the bloody tip of Dakos's sword-tail protruding from his chest.  
  
"Hurry, Link might need our help!" Impa shouted, and the calwots flew after her as she ran the way Link had gone. Her and the calwots had beaten the energy-element dragon by destroying the bracelet which controlled it. They dragon had stopped attacking them and left, without a word. They ran throught the dungeons and came into a room, and seeing someone in it, they stopped. Cosha lay on the floor, muttering incoherently. "What is ihe/i doing here?" Impa wondered, having only seen Cosha once, back at the castle.  
  
"Who cares?" Colfix said, picking him up. "I'll carry him and we can ask him later. Let's go!"  
  
"Wait!" Saroe said."Something's coming!" She looked at the hall behind the group and gasped as she saw the huge, white-orange Queen of dragons approaching.  
  
"bWe must hurry, little ones. Link is in grave danger./b" The Queen rushed in front of them, and they followed her without question. She led them past the dungeons, through a series of twisting tunnels. Many passes branched off from the main one, but the Queen seemed to know where she was going, so the others rushed to follow her. Soon the group came to a metal door, and the Queen breathed exploding flames at it. The thick metal door practically disintegrated, small peices of it scattering as the Queen's breath destroyed it instantly. The Queen entered the room, and saw her subject, Dakos, with his tail stuck halfway into Link.  
  
"bM-My Queen!/b" The dragon kneeled, yanking his tail out of Link. The pain finally came to the poor warrior.  
  
"Eeeaaaahhhhgg!" Link screamed as the tail left his chest, and he fell to his knees. He yelled again, putting his hands over the wound, which was spilling blood everywhere. He fell flat, and his blood pooled around his heaving body.   
  
"LINK!" Zelda yelled, running over to him. Impa, and the calwots with Cosha, came out from behind the Queen, staring at the red-drenched form of Link, who was vainly trying to breath with his almost blood-filled lungs.   
  
"Even imy/i magic can't fix something that bad..." Sahroe wispered solemly. Zelda reached the fallen warrior, kneeling next to him. The Dragonlord managed to turn his head and look at them, but then he spotted Sahoriel and started shaking. The dragon Queen walked over to Link and Zelda, covering the distance in two steps.  
  
"bMove away from him, princess Zelda./b" The Queen said. Zelda's tear-filled eyes looked up at the beautiful and giant form of the Queen. Although she could barely see the face of Sahoriel, her head was so high up, the princess instinctively knew the Queen did not mean Link any harm. She moved away from him. Dakos also backed away, sorry he had stabbed Link and not daring speak to his Queen. The Queen lifted a massive paw and held it over Link, and golden-silver magic came from it, encircling his still form. His sword wound closed up and his blood returned, and the Queen removed her paw. Zelda stared in silence at Link, who didn't move.  
  
"Were you in time...?" She asked fearfully.  
  
"bFear not, princess, I was in time./b" The dragon replied. "bArise, Link!/b" Her voice awakened the unconscious hero, and he stood up. Zelda ran over to him, throwing her arms around him. He hugged her back, glad to be alive. Zelda released her friend and backed up, and Link looked down at the Dragonlord, who he realized was shaking.  
  
"Sahoriel, I mean Your Majesty...please don't kill the Dragonlord, he must have some good in him!" Link said.  
  
"bIt is okay, Link. As a favor to you, I will not kill him. I will do the opposite. You see, he has an evil spirit controlling his body, and I will get rid of it. This way, he can begin a new life free from it's evil influence./b" The Queen said a few words, and some white magic came from her deep eyes, entering the Dragonlord. At first he screamed, but then the light magic destroyed the evil spirit in him and healed his body and soul. Shakily, he rose to his feet. His eyes were no longer a blood-thirsty red, but a pretty blue, like Link's.   
  
"Am I finally free?" He asked. Link noticed that his voice was no longer deep and angry, but soft and human, with a tone not unlike his own.  
  
"bAs a final deed to repay my debts to the the Hero of Time, I will reveal the Dragonlord's past. His real name is Chain, and the first minute Ganondorf saw him, he knew this boy had special talents with dragons. This boy was born with the spirit of a dragon-keeper, and most dragons would naturally like him and do as he asked if he was good. Ganon perverted this natural talent. He put an evil spirit in the boy, and raised him as an apprentice. He gave the boy his staff and headpiece, and taught him to control dragons. The boy was to lend power to Ganon's evil efforts. Finally he gained possession of the Dragon Summoning Portal and gave it to Chain, who had become the Dragonlord. He then sent the boy away to practice his talents for a year./b"  
  
"Now I remember! My name is Chain, isn't it? And I remember you too, Link..."  
  
"Huh? What do you mean?" Link, Zelda, Impa and the calwots looked at him questioningly.  
  
"bI'm getting to that!/b" The Queen said, blowing over the humans beneath her with her breath. "bOops, sorry, humans. I'll speak more quietly. How's this?/b" She asked, speaking in what would be considered a whisper to her, but was still quite loud the the Hylians.  
  
"That's fine." Link said, and she continued.  
  
"bDuring that year the boy learned to use his staff to summon dragons and control them partially with his headpiece, but could not completely control them unless he put a bracelet on them. That's when he traveled to the dragon's village, during the night time. That night I was sleeping outside, enjoying the coolness, and he charmed my guards and captured me so I could help him put bracelets on dragons and summon really big ones. He went back to Hyrule and found that his Master was gone, imprisoned in the evil realm. He quickly learned that you and Zelda had done it, and he knew that with your triforces he could undo it. At that time he had no way of knowing, Link, that you were his brother./b" Link, astonished but happy, stared at Chain.  
  
"My...brother? I have a family? Yes!!" Link said. Chain looked back at Link, smiling.   
  
"Now I remember you! My older brother! I haven't thought about you since I met Ganondorf!" Chain ran at Link and hugged him.  
  
"bYes, he is your long-lost brother. When your mother was on her way to the Deku Tree, she held a one-yr-old Link, and a newly born Chain. A monster attacked her on the way, and stole Chain. She barely escaped with Link and her own life. The Deku tree never knew of Chain, that is why he never told you, Link. Chain as a baby was shown to Ganondorf, and the evil man, recognizing his abilities imediately, had him raised as a warrior by the Gerudo. When he was seven he was taken back to Ganondorf, who put the spirit in him and took him as an aprentice. Chain could not control himself after the evil spirit was put in him, but now it is all over. I am glad to finally reveal these secrets to you!/b"  
  
"Wow, I've had a brother these last fourteen years...this is so cool! I've known about my family for only thirty seconds, and it's already great!" Link said, squeezing Chain in a tight embrace. Impa laughed and stepped forward.  
  
"Hey, Link. I think you dropped this." She said, tossing his hat at him. Link let go of Chain, catching it. Zelda turned at the voice of her beloved caretaker Impa, noticing her for the first time.  
  
"Impa! Where have you been? I've missed you so much!" Zelda ran over and hugged Impa.  
  
"And I missed you as well. You can be assured that I'll never leave suddenly like that again. Link didn't do as well as I had hoped at protecting you...." She looked over at the sorry-looking Link, then started laughing. "Oh, Link! You know I was only kidding!"  
  
"You were? Heheheh." Link laughed as Dakos came up to him.  
  
"bLink, I'm sorry for what I did to you. I can never repay you for saving my Queen./b.."  
  
"It's okay. Just don't be evil anymore!"  
  
"bNo problem there! I've had enough bossing around to last me a lifetime!/b" Sahoriel looked at him strangely. "bOf course, I'll still take orders from you, Your Majesty!/b" He said quickly, making everyone laugh.  
  
"bGood. Here's your first order: while I take this ancient fortress back to the dragon village where it belongs, I want you to carry the humans back to their home in Hyrule. By the way, you might want to negotiate with the King a bit. I am interested in trading with his country, and perhaps becoming a part of it. I never gave the humans much credit, but the humans from his kingdom are the finest I've ever met./b"  
  
With that, Link, Chain, Zelda, Impa and Cosha (who still had not quite regained his sanity) got on Dakos's back. With his large wings, the dragon easily flew out of the fortress with all five of them riding on him, Coflix and Saroe following. On their way to Hyrule they stopped at Catalin to pick up the fully-healed Raykel. Feelack revealed that the village had, surprisingly, voted for the idea of establishing trade between their village and the castle, and he appointed Saroe and Coflix to be the official negotiators. The nine mismatched creatures flew off to Hyrule, all of them looking forward to a peaceful agreement between their respective races, glad that the problems caused by the Dragonlord had finally come to an end.  
  
The troubles with the Dragonlord are over, but what happens when the tensions between calwot and dragon rise to a boil, and Link is caught right in the middle? Find out in my next story. To see the art for my fanfiction that I've drawn, click on this link: http:t) e-mail me or include it in your review, please. I highly value comments on my work. Thanks for reading! -Talonclawfange 


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